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Suspected Terror Plot Arrests; Presidential Media Blitz; World Leaders to Gather at U.N.; Mother and Five Kids Killed in Naples, Florida Home; Cemetery Accused of Desecrating Graves; Video of ACORN made by Young Journalists; The Hunt Continues for an Escaped Mentally Ill Killer; Stars Line Up for the Emmys
Aired September 20, 2009 - 18:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Tonight, investigators tell why they believe three newly arrested Afghan men leaving in the U.S. were planning to blow up Americans.
He's been everywhere, but is President Obama's media blitz causing Americans to tune him out on health care?
World enemies and allies all in the same room right here in the U.S. What happens this week when they meet at the United Nations?
The search intensifies for a legally insane killer who hears voices in his head. Where is he?
And where is this man, and what does he know about the brutal murders of his wife and five children? And international search underway right now.
A CNN exclusive investigation of one of California's largest cemeteries. The charges: bones and skulls dug up and dumped in a pit to make room for more bodies.
Soledad O'Brien is live in Cuba at the concert for peace, but Cubans in the U.S. are mad as hell.
And our cameras are rolling on the red carpet at the Emmy Awards in California. We're expecting some big stars to drop by live.
Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon.
We start with an international terror investigation that stretches from New York to Colorado and all the way to Pakistan. Three men arrested late last night -- two in Colorado, the other in New York -- are due in federal court rooms tomorrow.
Our homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve is standing by live in Denver with the very latest -- Jeanne?
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Don, we have not learned much about this alleged plot but we have gotten a glimmer of the investigation after the arrest of these three men. Najibullah Zazi, he has been the focus of this investigation for the past week. His father, Mohammad, both picked up here outside Denver, Colorado. Then Ahmad Afzali picked up in Queens, New York. All of them charged with making false statements to the FBI as part of a terror investigation.
Now, experts tell us that the government is likely trying to use these charges to pressure these individuals into cooperating with the investigation, and that it's perfectly possible that additional charges will be brought later.
The New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly had some comments about the investigation today. Here's part of what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COMMISSIONER RAY KELLY, NEW YORK POLICE: I think it's important to note that in many ways, this investigation is only just beginning. It has many different avenues to take. As the attorney general said, this investigation is going forward in New York, in Denver, and in other locations in the country as well. So right now, that's the information that's been put forward by the U.S. attorney to affect an arrest. But this investigation has many other avenues that are going to be followed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MESERVE: Now, the court documents filed allege that Najibullah Zazi lied to investigators about nine pages of handwritten notes in his computer that detailed bomb-making instructions. And the charges against the other two men are that they lied to investigators about a series of telephone calls that tipped off Najibullah Zazi to the fact that this investigation was underway. Also in these documents, allegations that Najibullah Zazi did reveal to investigators that he went to an al Qaeda training camp in the tribal areas of Pakistan in 2008, where he got weapons and explosives charges.
Just yesterday, Zazi and his attorney were denying that any such admission had taken place. All of these men due in court tomorrow.
Don, back to you.
LEMON: Our homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve -- Jeanne, we appreciate it. Thank you very much.
Five one-one-one interviews, five different networks and one president working very hard to break the stalemate in the nation's health care debate.
Our White House correspondent Ed Henry watched all the president's morning talk show appearances and he is in Washington with the highlights.
I watched him, too, and I was confused about which show I was watching because he was on all the networks at the same time.
ED HENRY, CNN SR. WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, you're right, Don. Certainly, what's clear is that history was made. No president had had a full court press quite like this. What's unclear is whether he changed any minds.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY (voice-over): After uttering more than 10,000 words, one question remains: Did the president move the ball forward on health care?
JOHN KING, HOST, "STATE OF THE UNION": If the Baucus bill made it to your desk, as is, would you sign it? Does it meet your goals?
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Well, that's such a hypothetical since it won't get there as is, that I'm not going to answer that question. But can I say that it does meet some broad bills that all the bills that have been introduced to me.
HENRY: Bottom line: the president still did not get very specific or break much new ground on health care. And he was confronted on a range of other tough issues, including the still sluggish economy.
OBAMA: The jobs picture is not going to improve considerably, and it could even get a little bit worse over the next couple of months. And we're probably not going to start seeing enough job creation to deal with a rising population until sometime next year.
HENRY: On Afghanistan, the public is getting anxious. But the president said he wants more time to sort out the strategy before deciding whether to send more troops.
OBAMA: There is a natural inclination to say, "If I get more, then I can do more." But right now, the question is -- the first question is, are we doing the right thing? Are we pursuing the right strategy?
HENRY: As for health care, the president acknowledged it has not gone as planned.
OBAMA: During this whole health care debate, there have been times where I've said, you know...
GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC NEWS: You lost control?
OBAMA: Well, not so much lost control, but where I've said to myself, "Somehow I'm not breaking through."
HENRY: Top Republicans insist he still has not broken through despite all the interviews and high profile speeches.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: He can be on every news show until the end of time. If he doesn't get Republicans and Democrats in a room and get off TV, we're never going to solve this problem.
HENRY: But asked about another Republican claiming they're winning the health battle, the president expressed confidence about the final stretch.
OBAMA: Well, you know, they -- they were saying they were winning during the election, too.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HENRY: A little confidence there from the president.
Now, he also said he believes the public option is still alive, but he was not adamant about saying he thinks it will survive the final negotiations. So, it still seems like that may be off the table in the end, Don.
LEMON: Man, Lindsey Graham was very harsh. And some people believe there's some truth to what he's saying though, Ed.
HENRY: Well, because if you take a look, for example, at what happened after that high profile speech to a joint session of Congress, CNN's initial flash poll suggested he got a little bit of a bump. But within a couple of days, it really didn't translate into anything nationwide in most of the polls, in terms of a longstanding bump. It was sort of a quick little bounce, maybe.
And so, Republicans are anticipating that with the president not making any major news hear, not showing his hand and saying, "Let's go this way on the public option" or more specific in any major direction, it seems unlikely this alone will move it.
But the White House is still confident. You saw the president himself and his body language. And his smile and laugh at the end there. That this is a marathon and not a sprint, and that he's inching along, and in the end, we'll still win.
LEMON: All right. Let's move forward, Ed, and talk about, really foreign policy, because next week at the U.N., it's going to be a big week there.
HENRY: No doubt. I mean, there are all kinds of important issues like climate change already on the table at the U.N. General Assembly meeting.
But all of a sudden, in the last 24 hours, the White House has revealed that the president is going to have, on Tuesday, a trilateral meeting with the Israeli prime minister and the Palestinian president. That does not mean there is a peace deal at hand here, but it does suggest that, all of a sudden, after months and months of stalled negotiations, the peace process may be -- and I stress may be -- back on track. That would be a big victory for this president early in the week if he can at least sort of push this along, Don.
LEMON: All right. Thank you very much for that, Ed.
HENRY: Thanks, Don.
LEMON: When President Obama heads to the United Nations this week, he'll take part in the usual speeches and high level meetings. He'll also be sharing the spotlight with some of the world's most controversial leaders.
Here's CNN's Adriana Hauser.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ADRIANA HAUSER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It will be the first visit to the U.S. for Libya's Colonel Muammar Gaddafi since he seized power in 1969. The controversial trip comes weekend after the release of the only man convicted of bombing Pan Am Flight 103, a Libyan national.
Joining Gaddafi at the U.N. summit, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, who will be attending in the midst of the debate surrounding Iran's nuclear problem, his disputed re-election, and his continued denial of the Holocaust. Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes, but a pressure group will be organizing a protest outside the U.N.
MARK WALLACE, PRES., UNITED AGAINST NUCLEAR IRAN: Well known that they're on the cusp of and are developing an illegal nuclear weapon. But most recently, there was an illegitimate election for President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and really, a theocratic thuggish regime, stole an election from the Iranian people, and there was a brutal repression of dissent, and really, brutal actions toward Iran's own people.
HAUSER: Another leader expected to stir up emotions is Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. During his visit to the U.N. in 2006, Chavez called then-President George W. Bush the devil. Chavez has since developed stronger ties with Libya, Iran and Russia, and recently announced plans to pursue a nuclear energy program.
HECTOR CONTRERAS, VENEZUELAN PROTESTER: I think it represents a really effect to the United States -- but not only to the United States but also to the world. I mean, this is -- nobody is watching Venezuela right now. Everybody is concerned about what's going on in Iran but nobody is watching Venezuela.
HAUSER: Activist groups and some residents are outraged. They have planned boycotts and several protests. They have pressed hotels not to host these three leaders and restaurants not to serve them. Even in these tough economic times, many businesses have agreed.
SOPHIA ARGYROS, OWNER, NATIONS CAFE: I would feel uncomfortable. I don't think I would want them here. Especially, we have a lot of regular customers. They would not like that.
HAUSER: The U.S. has received petitions to deny them visas to enter the country. But under diplomatic convention, it could be difficult for Washington to do so.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right. Adriana Hauser -- she joins us tonight from New York.
Adriana, here's my question. Why is it so hard for the U.S. to deny visas to controversial world leaders? HAUSER: Don, even though the U.S. is in Midtown Manhattan, the U.N. is considered international territory. And following Democratic conventions, the host country, in this case, the U.S., has to allow all delegates of member states into the organization or at least in a very close parameter, Don.
LEMON: All right. So, if you had these hotels, you know, and restaurants refusing to serve them, where are they going to stay? Where are they going to eat?
HAUSER: You know, plans for security reason, Don, are not disclosed, but what we hear is that their country's U.N. missions would be the safer bet.
LEMON: All right. Thank you very much for that Adriana Hauser.
Another story that affects New York and the nation as well, New York Governor David Paterson says he is not scrapping his re-election plans in spite of reports the White House wants him to step aside. President Obama has not personally contacted Paterson, but administration officials have reportedly sat down with the governor out of fear that he cannot recover politically from his dismal approval ratings.
But Paterson insisted to reporters today, his campaign is still on track and refused to talk about any conversations with the White House.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. DAVID PATERSON (D), NEW YORK: I'm not talking about any specific conversations. As I said, I am running for office. I'm not going to discuss comments or conversations. The most important issue that I'm trying to focus on for the next month -- and this is what I've told everybody in every conversation -- is the unprecedented deficit that we have mid year, and that we have the fewest means to address it. And I've got to get the legislation in Albany hopefully without any distractions to mediation (ph).
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. Look who is back. We can't get enough. Our White House correspondent Ed Henry is joining us again.
Ed, you know, asking Governor Paterson to step aside is, in so many words, wouldn't that be an extraordinary intervention into a state political race for the president to do that?
HENRY: It sure is. It is political hardball, clearly. And I think what it shows is that there is nervousness in this administration about the political landscape in general, but in New York in particular. Usually pretty friendly to Democrats, they're worried now potentially not about only using the governorship but you've got a U.S. Senate seat, Hillary Clinton's old seat up for grabs again in 2010. You've got all kinds of down ballot races in the U.S. House, local state races as well. And so, what I think is going on behind the scenes, what I've been hearing from top White House officials, is that there have been these conversations, as you say, in which they've talk to the governor' camp about how, look, the political climate is not great but they're insisting, they're not shoving him, I think, you know, out the door. I think what it is is maybe a gentle push. Maybe a suggestion that, "Look, we're not going to shove you out, but if you jump, we're not going to shed too many tears," Don.
LEMON: Now, just to make sure we're getting this right. I'm reading a report in the daily news and it's saying that Paterson actually reached out to the White House, instead of the other way around.
HENRY: I honestly don't know who initiated the contact, but we do know that administration officials have sat down with him, have sat down with his advisers. And regardless of who started it, it's very clear that the White House is nervous, yes, and that they're talking because the White House is nervous from the president on down, that all of a sudden, the political landscape in New York could shift.
Let's not forget, there are also some other big races coming up. Governor's races in New Jersey, Virginia -- these sort of off year races now in '09 and then you look ahead to 2010 with so many congressional and Senate races as well. Given health care, given the economy and a lot of these issues, there's general nervous about -- you know, at the White House, about where all this is going to wind up. But in particular, very worried about New York.
LEMON: All right. Ed Henry, thank you very much. Coming up at tonight at 10:00, we should tell our viewers, we're going to talk much, much more about this and what does this mean, especially for the former mayor of New York and presidential candidate Rudy Giuliani. That plays into this as well, tonight at 10:00 p.m. Eastern here on CNN.
The manhunt continues in Washington State for an escaped killer who is criminally insane. We're live from Spokane.
And in Florida, authorities are searching for the father of five children who were found murdered along with their mother in their home.
And in Los Angeles, more allegations of graves being dug up so the plots can be resold. CNN's Abbie Boudreau investigates. She's here live.
Also, we want your feedback. You can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, MySpace or iReport.com.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: You know, this is a horrible, horrible story. Police in Naples, Florida, say it is the worst of the worst. A mother and five children found brutally slain in their home late last night. The oldest child was 9 years old. The youngest, 11 months. And police are searching for the father. His name is Mesac Damas whom they say boarded a flight to Haiti on Friday. Now, family members have contacted authorities on Thursday saying they had not heard from the mother and the missing persons report was filed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SHERIFF KEVIN RAMBOSK, COLLIER COUNTY, FLORIDA: We are not going to get into the manner of death at this time due to the investigation ongoing. But I can tell you, that in no uncertain terms, this is the most horrific and violent event this community has ever experienced.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Police do say that domestic violence was reported at the home in the past. We want to talk more about this really terrible story.
Christina Hernandez of our affiliate WINK is working on the story for us and she joins us from Naples, Florida, right now.
Do you have any idea -- they believe that this guy, Damas, that he may be in Haiti?
CHRISTINA HERNANDEZ, WINK TV REPORTER (via telephone): Right. He is from Haiti. So, they believe he flew there on a flight from the Miami airport Friday just before 10:00 in the morning.
LEMON: Are investigators in Haiti --are they helping authorities in Florida look for this man?
HERNANDEZ: Right now, the sheriff's office is saying no law enforcement in Haiti is participating in this. But there are people from the U.S. there that are doing something, but what exactly they're doing, they're unsure of.
LEMON: And they are -- they're not exactly sure, Christina, what sparked this. The family did live in an upscale community, a gated community, as a matter of fact. But as I said, just reported, police have been called to that residence in the past and it was for domestic disputes.
HERNANDEZ: Right. The last time was in January. But since the year 2000, I believe the term was "handful." They've had a handful of calls, all domestic problems when deputies would go to that home.
LEMON: OK. What are neighbors there saying about this? Any witnesses? Anyone hear anything?
HERNANDEZ: No, nobody knew anything. We were the first on the scene last night and there were dozens and dozens of neighbors outside trying to figure out what was going on. No one was saying anything. And finally, when it was confirmed that six people were dead inside the home, everyone was pretty sad and shocked because they say it's a really quiet community and a lot of kids are always playing with each other outside. So, everyone was pretty surprised by this. LEMON: And just want to, you know, get this very clear. Mr. Damas is -- they say he's a person of interest, Christina. He's not necessarily a suspect, correct?
HERNANDEZ: Right. He's not a suspect yet. They just want to talk to him. And then after they do have that conversation with him, he could become a suspect. But right now, he is still being call a person of interest.
LEMON: All right, Christina Hernandez of WINK, our affiliate there in Florida, working that story for us from Naples. We appreciate it.
Meantime, somewhere in the Pacific Northwest, an escaped killer from Washington State, a mental hospital there, he's on the loose. Phillip Paul vanished Thursday while on an outing to a Spokane County fair with 30 other patients. Now, Paul is a schizophrenic who was acquitted by reason of insanity in 1987 killing of an elderly woman. Authorities suspect Paul may have planned his escape because he was carrying a backpack, $50, and left little behind in his hospital room. A live report is coming up for you.
An aspiring young rapper from California who used the stage name Syko Sam and glorified killing people is in custody in Virginia tonight in a death of up to four people. So far, 20-year-old Richard McCroskey has been charged with the murder of a local minister. But police say he'll probably be charged with three more murders once those bodies are identified. McCroskey was arrested at the Richmond airport, awaiting a flight back to California. It is not yet known how the suspect knew the victims.
Allegations of grave desecration. A former cemetery worker tells us he personally broke open crypts and dumped bones all on order from his bosses. It is a CNN special investigation.
And we've heard a lot about the ACORN workers caught in embarrassing situations. But how much do you know about the filmmakers who got the video? We're digging deeper.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: We have a CNN exclusive for you now. It's a dramatic follow-up to a story CNN Special Investigations Unit broke regarding a major Jewish cemetery outside of Los Angeles. A lawsuit claims, workers desecrated graves there for years.
Now, one of the cemetery's own employees is speaking out exclusively to the CNN Special Investigation Unit correspondent Abbie Boudreau and she joins us now live tonight with the story.
Abbie, when I heard one of the cemetery workers was speaking to you, my question was, isn't he afraid? Is he afraid of losing his job?
ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN INVESTIGATIVE CORRESPONDENT: He was really afraid of losing his job. And that's why we actually hid his face and his identity. He tells a gruesome story of grave diggers chipping into vaults to make room for new ones, also then throwing away human bones and skulls.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOUDREAU (voice-over): This grave digger just got off work from Eden Memorial. He was still in his cemetery uniform when he agreed to talk to CNN.
CEMETERY WORKER (through translator): I want to tell the truth.
BOUDREAU: He says his supervisors told him many times to break concrete vaults to make room for new ones. Oftentimes, bones from the broken vault would fall out. He says his supervisors told him to throw those bones away.
CEMETERY WORKER: Whatever you need to do, just break it so the new grave will be dug and the new vault could go in.
BOUDREAU: He says he and other grave diggers dump human bones and skulls into a 70 to 80-foot hole in the cemetery.
CEMETERY WORKER: They will pick it up and take it to the dump.
BOUDREAU: When asked how often graves were disturbed, he told us two to three times a week. And the total number of broken vaults was in the hundreds.
CEMETERY WORKER: There are 300 but probably more.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So, 300 gravesites were disturbed and the remains were moved around.
CEMETERY WORKER: Si.
BOUDREAU: He said he feared getting fired if he didn't do what he was told, though he did feel bad about it.
CEMETERY WORKER: Because it wasn't correct what our bosses told us to do. But if I didn't do it, they would run me off.
BOUDREAU: He says he was even instructed what to do if people were visiting the cemetery.
CEMETERY WORKER: They would cover the holes with greens so the people couldn't see it.
BOUDREAU: And Mateo Ruelas Garcia, a former Eden Memorial Park worker, tells the same story, that a salesman from the cemetery was the one to instruct him.
MATEO RUELAS GARCIA, FORMER EMPLOYEE: Break in this piece, break in this piece. And I said I'm not supposed to break in. They say go ahead. Nobody can see. Go ahead and do that.
BOUDREAU: Garcia was fired last year with the company that owns the cemetery, Service Corporation International, or SCI, won't say why. Both Garcia and the current employee have come forward now, days after a lawsuit was filed against SCI.
In a statement, SCI said, quote, "These people are not credible." The company went on to say that, "in a prior investigation conducted by the Department of Consumer Affairs, Eden's grounds crew was interviewed. Obviously, these two disgruntled individuals did not raise these sweeping allegations in prior opportunities with the state and are now changing their stories."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
BOUDREAU: And a new development this weekend, the Board of Rabbis of Southern California says it's, quote, "concerned and troubled by the allegations being made against Eden Memorial." This group said it affects the entire Jewish community and, of course, Friday was the start of the Jewish holy days, the start of Rosh Hashanah. So, horrible timing, of course.
LEMON: It is. I mean, it's bad anyway around.
BOUDREAU: Yes.
LEMON: But then, as you said, with the holiday, you know, there are rules, right? And the state governs these things. So, they're planning to do anything about it at the state?
BOUDREAU: Right. We do know that the state is looking into this. They're doing a routine investigation. We also know that the lawyer who has filed this lawsuit has asked the California attorney general's office to step in and to take a look at, you know, what's going on and what's going on in this case.
And part of that routine investigation is to, you know, interview some of the workers, you know, the grave diggers, even the people that we've talked to possibly, and just to look around the site and see if anything just looks suspicious or anything looks out of the ordinary.
LEMON: You know, I'm glad you guys are on top of this. This is the first, you know, grave desecration story that you've done and you wonder what is going on around the country and how often this has happened. So, thank you for doing this and stay on top of it.
BOUDREAU: Thank you.
LEMON: All right. Abbie Boudreau from our special investigations unit.
ACORN is getting roasted. Why even the president is talking about the undercover video of employees giving tax tips to a fake pimp and prostitute.
Then toasting the style of madmen, we're raising our glasses on set in Hollywood.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Even the president, President Obama wants to know, what is going on at ACORN? He has seen the tape of employees giving tax advice to a couple posing as a pimp and a prostitute, and now he is backing an investigation of the community organizing group. This comes as ACORN's head honcho vows to clean house with her organization teetering on the verge of losing federal funding.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BERTHA LEWIS, CEO, ACORN: I was outraged by it. Everyone should be. And I can understand how the Congress was also.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: So Bertha Lewis is ordering her own investigation into the video scandal. She says she'll announce an auditor tomorrow. But some lawmakers say that's not good enough.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. DARREL ISSA, (R), CALIFORNIA: We asked them today if they would bring in an Ernest & Young or Price Waterhouse auditors. One of the committee's biggest challenges is there are so many, they're unaudited, and their own internal review by their counsel showed that they don't have the fire walls to keep federal dollars from being used for other purposes, including campaign-related activities.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The president spoke out about the ACORN investigation this morning on one of the Sunday shows. He says he is not following it closely because it wasn't no one problem facing the American people but he is aware of it. ACORN is now fighting for its reputation and its federal money.
But the people who sparked the fury are not a pimp and a prostitute. They are just journalists. Our Jessica Yellin shows us, it is a couple of 20-somethings armed with salacious costume, a hidden camera and an idea.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): These are the hidden camera videos that triggered a fire storm over grassroots activists group ACORN. Behind the videos, two 20-somethings, Hannah Giles, seen hear posing as a prostitute, and James O'Keefe, pretending to be her pimp.
JAMES O'KEEFE, JOURNALIST: Hannah Giles and I continued our investigation of ACORN.
YELLIN: The two are conservative filmmakers. According to her web biography, Giles is the daughter of conservative writer Doug Giles. Now an internet sensation, she has appeared on FOX News.
HANNAH GILES, JOURNALIST: As I sat there, I was like, I cannot believe they're actually falling for this, and not necessarily falling for it, but what can we get them to say next?
YELLIN: O'Keefe says he is a filmmaker dedicated to exposing corruption he believes the main stream media ignores. Here he is in his pimp outfit on "FOX News."
O'KEEFE: I think this is the future of investigative journalism and it's the future of political activism.
YELLIN: The two have gotten results. Since these videos were posted, the U.S. Senate has voted to cut off some of ACORN's funding. And media outlets from the Washington time to Jon Stewart are asking...
JON STEWART, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW": Where were the real reporters on this story? You know investigative media? Give me camera three. Where were you?
YELLIN: It's not the first time agenda-driven activists have made headlines with had you hidden camera reports. The animal rights group PETA makes them all the time. And political campaigns have driven news with videos like this. Remember Macaca?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. GEORGE ALLEN, (R), VIRGINIA: Macaca or whatever his name is.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
YELLIN: That remark, considered racially offensive by some, took down an incumbent Senator.
Experts in investigative journalism say reporters are wise to be cautious about posing as fake characters and using hidden cameras to get a story.
ROBERT ROSENTHAL, CENTER FOR INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING: You really have to weigh, again, how important the information is, how important the story is to society, your community, and is there any other way to get at it. I think it does raise questions of fairness in the credibility of the media.
YELLIN: the video makers turned down a request for an interview through their sponsor, conservative commentator, Andrew Brightbart (ph). Brightbart (ph) tells us the two made these videos out of a sense of idealism and righteousness, and he says, they have another video coming.
Jessica Yellin, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right, Jessica.
Hundreds of thousands of Cubans crowded the revolution square for a Peace Without Borders concert. CNN is there. Soledad O'Brien will join us.
If you're living in the southeast, it is a different day, but the same very soggy forecast. On and on and on.
Jackie! I know you're checking on it. What's going on?
We need to see the sun and less rain. Jackie is checking on it for you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Back now to the manhunt in Spokane, Washington, where authorities are searching for a mentally ill killer who escaped from custody while on a field trip to a county fair.
Colleen O'Brien of Spokane affiliate KXLY joins us now live with new information on that.
First question, any credible sightings? Are police talking about that, of this man, Phillip Paul?
COLLEEN O'BRIEN, REPORTER, KXLY: No, they have not record any credible sightings. However, we did just talk to authorities here and we have new information about where they're searching for Phillip Paul. They're in Clackamas (ph) County in Oregon. They have a command post set up there at a high school, Goldendale High School. The FBI, U.S. Marshals, Spokane and Yakama County authorities are there and they haven't said why they've set up a command there but they are searching for Phillip Paul in Clackamas (ph) County in Oregon.
LEMON: Does he have a connection to there? How is he connected to Oregon?
O'BRIEN: Not that we know of. They have not said any connections.
LEMON: We know he used to live in a halfway house in Spokane. And you talk to one of his roommates. What did that roommate say?
O'BRIEN: His roommate and most of the people at the Carlisle Care Center report him as a nice guy. They say he was very artistic. He used guitar music, sculpting and painting to deal with any sorts of anger issues. Everybody had the same thing to say. He was a nice guy but if -- if he didn't take his medicine, he was a little bull headed, a little defiant.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
AUSTIN FROEDG, FORMER ROOMMATE: I didn't see this outburst but I can tell, he is kind of a strong guy. And he is -- kind of around him, there was something about, he kept something secret, I'm sure. And I never got into knowing all those secrets or anything, or what the deal was. But he is a big guy. And I guess he could be capable of probably anything, you know, knowing him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: We heard from the roommate there, the quick question that everybody is wondering about, why was this guy allowed to go? Anyone, any official anywhere talking about that?
O'BRIEN: We ask that every time we talk with authorities and they are not going to talk about policy, if there is going to be any change in policy until this investigation is over. I don't do have want to mention, we learned something interesting about this case. Eastern has said to authorities, the have Spokane Sheriff's Department told us, they've confirmed, they check in his room. All of his clothes are gone from the room in Eastern State Hospital and they did confirm that he had been ordering freeze dried food for some time before this disappearance.
LEMON: They think he planned it.
Thank you very much. Colleen O'Brien of our affiliate KXLY in Spokane.
It's more of the same when it comes to the ridiculous amounts of rain in the southeastern United States. Meteorologist Jacqui Jeras has more in the Severe Weather Center.
Jacqui, seriously, just walking from the car to the building, I got drenched. I had to take off my shoes and put a fan on myself. It's crazy.
JERAS: It is crazy. The sun was out for like five minutes today.
LEMON: Two minutes maybe.
JERAS: Maybe two. Maybe it was a mirage, right?
(WEATHER REPORT)
JERAS: Let's take a look at a couple of pictures that we have for you out of South Carolina. If you're wondering what to do in all the rain and mud, here you go, Don. Ft. Jackson here was having their Marine Corps ultimate mud run. You go 4.2 miles of dirt roads through the mud, through trenches. You can see the logs in that area as well. Pretty incredible event. What do you say? Would you do it?
LEMON: Sure. Why not?
JERAS: Why not?
LEMON: Anything where there's sunshine, I'll go right now.
(LAUGHTER)
Even if you get all muddy.
JERAS: Why not?
LEMON: Appreciate it. Patience right if you're in the southeast.
All right, it's game on for the Dallas Cowboys in the billion- dollar stadium that Jerry built. But does it live up to all the hype? We're going to check in.
And toasting the hipster look and feel of "Mad Men." We'll take you behind the scenes of the hit show.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: OK, time for someone who I know will give me a hard time. No home TV for Jacksonville Jaguar fans. Once again, no sellout. But the Dallas Cowboys are expecting more than 100,000 fans for their match-up against the Giants tonight.
Our sports business analyst, Mr. Rick Horrow, is live in West Palm Beach with a shirt, a crazy smile, and probably some attitude.
Good to see you, Rick. You know, a television blackout, seriously, in Jacksonville versus a sellout in Dallas, explain what's going on there.
RICK HORROW, SPORTS BUSINESS ANALYST: The economy makes strange bedfellows. Ticket prices increased in the NFL this year, Don, about 4 percent. 18 of the team kept their ticket prices about the sail. Jacksonville is one of those challenged markets. If they're not playing very well, people don't show up. If they don't show up, they don't have it on TV. They're facing that blackout the entire season. They have to get more people to come. That's the issue. A 50-area policy, if you don't come and you don't attend, you don't get to watch it on TV.
LEMON: Let's talk about the Olympics. I was recently in Chicago and that's all the news was about. Why won't President Obama go to Copenhagen to help out? Yeah, they're going send the first lady. So the city of Chicago is spending big-time money and sending two high- profile ladies to help land these games. It may be a good strategy, sending the first lady.
HORROW: Well, yeah. A lot of attitude in that question, pal.
LEMON: What do you mean?
HORROW: Are you having a good weekend? Everything all right?
LEMON: No attitude, you know. That's my town, man.
HORROW: And everybody wants it in Chicago. You know what they're spending? They're spending $50 million just for the bid itself, as you know. The studies are predicting either a half million-dollar net profit or a $300,000 loss. The Chicago city council forced a private insurance policy of $1.4 billion to protect the taxpayers. Who goes to make the case? Michelle Obama goes. But Prime Minister or President Putin wept to Guatemala City to get the 2014 winter Olympics for Russia and Tony Blair went to Singapore for the London Olympics. The king of Spain, the head state of Brazil, the guys from Japan are going. Michelle Obama is great. Maybe the president makes a dramatic entrance at the last minute. But you know who else is going? Oprah Winfrey. Don't worry about anything else. Oprah is coming.
LEMON: Well, I don't know. Maybe you can say it's a done deal now, huh?
HORROW: Yeah, no kidding.
LEMON: That will be a story we'll be following for a while because a lot of people are touting it. The city officials are not happy about the Olympics coming. They think it will hurt taxpayers. We'll go into that later.
HORROW: We'll get into that before this election. There are a lot of other takes on that.
LEMON: Absolutely. So let's get back to football now, but this time talking college ball. Two big upsets yesterday. Is it fueling the push for a playoff system?
HORROW: Well, it is kind of early. Brigham Young goes down. Southern Cal goes down. Those are two of the top ten team. Every time there is an upset, there is always somebody who says, if there is a playoff system, this national ranking shouldn't determine who wins the championship. The difference now, Don, this is September. We've got three more months of this before the bowls. The one thing that happens is people do talk about college football and here we go again. And I know, number one in the country continues to win, University of Florida, the Gators. Kudos to them, right?
LEMON: Yeah, whatever.
HORROW: Whatever, right.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: I know.
(CROSSTALK)
LEMON: Thank you, sir. I'm surprised you are not in Hollywood tonight.
HORROW: Why?
LEMON: The stars are out tonight in Los Angeles.
That's for the primetime Emmy awards. I think Rick is Emmy- worthy. We're live on the red carpet for you. You can see some of the stars arriving there. There are a couple of stars there from "30 Rock" arriving on the red carpeted. We're going to go live.
Speaking of Emmys, "Mad Men" are leading with the nominations. We're toasting and taking you behind the scenes.
(EDGE OF DISCOVERY)
COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: The stars are lining up for the 2009 Emmy awards, and our star is lighting up the red carpet. There she is, Kara Finnstrom.
Hello, Kara. Who have you seeing? What are you wearing? Who are you wearing?
(LAUGHTER)
KARA FINNSTROM, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Well, actually, who I'm seeing right here is Rob Lowe. Let's bring him in before we lose him here because the stars are doing the full carpet walk.
Thanks so much for joining us. The star "Brothers and Sisters," and you'll be presenting tonight as well.
ROB LOWE, ACTOR: I am presenting best lead actor in a comedy, and always fun to be a part of the Emmys.
FINNSTROM: So we understand most of the people are paired up with a presenter, but you are going to go solo. How do you wrangle that?
LOWE: I think they were scared to put somebody with me, quite frankly, because I'm capable of just about anything. If Sally Fields doesn't win tonight, then I'm pulling a Kanye. I'm just saying.
FINNSTROM: You did bring your two sons. You got them in tow. I know you won't go too crazy on us.
LOWE: They're my bodyguards. My bodyguard Matthew Lowe. My other bodyguard Shani Lowe.
FINNSTROM: What do you think about dad and being here tonight and the great show?
SHANI LOWE, SON OF ROB LOWE: We're just grateful that he took us. It's a great experience.
FINNSTROM: Is this the first time he has brought you to something like this?
MATTHEW LOWE, SON OF ROB LOWE: Yeah, this is our first time at the Emmys.
FINNSTROM: Thank you so much.
Before we get you go, let's take a look at your handsome ensemble. What are you wearing tonight? Got to ask that question.
LOWE: This is from the good people at Dolce and Gabbana with the pocket square from my late, great manager, Bernie Brillstein (ph).
FINNSTROM: Very nice. Thanks and good luck to Sally tonight. I hope she takes it.
FINNSTROM: Don, as can you see, a packed red carpet. We've had the guys from "Mad Men," a short work, obviously, "30 Rock" a huge contender here tonight. It's exciting to see them all. They're all dressed up. And we've got a couple more hours here before we go in and the show gets underway.
LEMON: Kara, you just named two of my favorite shows, "Mad Men, "30 Rock," and "Always Sunny in Philadelphia." I love that show.
All right. Keep us posted.
FINNSTROM: Thanks, Don.
LEMON: All right, Kara.
Once upon a time in America, women were secretaries, and corporate offices were occupied by, quite frankly, white men, and all of those men's offices have fully stocked bars that were used daily. Well, AMC's, or American Movie Classics', hit series, "Mad Men," one of my favorites, as I said, about a Madison Avenue advertising agency in the 1960s, goes to great lengths to capture the spirit of those bygone times.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT: Well, gee, booze is such a beg part of the show. Are these authentic bottles? And what actually are the actors drinking when they're doing their scenes?
AMY WELLS, "MAD MEN" DECORATOR: They're drinking mostly iced tea. If it's a dark liquid, a caramel color liquid, it's usually tahaba, which is a type of he'sed tea.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Thank you, Freddy.
WELLS: These bottles are -- some of them are authentic, and some of them are not. Obviously, this one with the cork in it and the seal like that is the right thing. I try to find -- we all try to find real bottles, because they have changed considerably in the 50 or so years since the show takes please.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: 4:30. Close enough.
WELLS: This is Lane, right.
UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT: Lane Price's office. The Brit.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: There's no fog in London. There's no London fog.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Are you sure about that?
WELLS: He has this beautiful color with all his different liquors in it. Cut crystal. Quite a lovely thing. He has a wonderful cocktail set. UNIDENTIFIED CORRESPONDENT: Looks like Peggy isn't quite the hard drinker that the guys are.
WELLS: Well --
UNIDENTIFIED CORESPONDENT: She only has three bottles compared to some of the offices.
Well, open bar. Oh.
(LAUGHTER)
WELLS: Peggy got -- Peggy got Rummy's Bar.
UNIDENTIFIED CORESPONDENT: Yeah, when Rummy got laid off Peggy inherited his bar.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: Isn't that Freddy's Bar?
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: He left it.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: How the hell did you swing this?
UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: I'm sleeping with Don. It's really working out.
WELLS: Imagine finding this original bar with all the glasses intact, and every once in a while somebody takes a glass out of there, and I have to go hunting it down. Isn't that amazing that they're all in there and they all fit? I just love it. I love this bar.
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: That's where you've been.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Like an old friend.
LEMON: Kara Finnstrom joins us now, back from the red carpet at the Emmy awards.
Kara, that's late 1950s, early 1960s. It's called mid century, the best era in design, furniture architecture, and clothing. It's amazing. I hope they win.
FINNSTROM: Don, I know you are a big fan. I was hoping we would get someone for you live. We've spoken with quite a few of them, the stars, but they don't happen to be coming by right now, but "Mad Men" 16 nominations. Really quite an honor. A big coo for one of the cable shows.
LEMON: Yeah. What's your favorite? Do you have any favorite shows you want to tell me about?
FINNSTROM: Well, I'm going to try and bring in -- we've got Seth Green here. He is with "Family Guy," one of the voices. We're going to try to bring him in here for you in a second. We've seen... LEMON: Yeah. So -- Kara, we've just got a few minutes left.
Kara is trying to get some folks on the red carpet.
You'll have to tape it, and we'll have it tonight at 10:00.
Kara, you look great. Best of luck to everyone there in Los Angeles at the Emmy awards.
I'm Don Lemon at the CNN Center, Atlanta. Back here at 10:00 p.m. eastern. Have a good one.
