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Roman Polanski Arrested; Blair Underwood Opens HIV/AIDS Clinic; Honor Student Beaten to Death; Ohio River Traffic Halted; An In-Depth Look on Bill Richardson, Latino First; William Safire Dead at 79

Aired September 27, 2009 - 22:00   ET

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


DON LEMON, CNN NEWS ANCHOR; NEWSROOM: Tonight, the unbelievable video of a high school honor student beaten to death on tape. We're live on Chicago's deadly streets, then the growing call for a strategy and timeline for the war in Afghanistan, live in Washington with the president's plans. An iconic film director on the run for more than thirty years could be coming back to the U.S. to face prison time as a child sex offender.

One on one with New Mexico's governor Bill Richardson, why he's a pioneer and why Bill Clinton still has it in for him. And actor Blair Underwood is here to talk about what he's doing on the fight against HIV and AIDS and the young men who created this viral sensation; they join us live tonight live to chat.

LEMON: Hello everyone I'm Don Lemon at the scene of world headquarters in Atlanta. Our top story tonight is a developing one and it comes from Chicago's deadly streets where a high school honor student is dead brutally beaten by other young people and it's all caught on videotape. So fair warning to you, the tape is tough to watch but it is evidence of a growing epidemic of violence taking thousands of young lives in Chicago and around the country. It happened in Thursday and this videotape tells the story.

(VIDEO CLIP IS SHOWN)

LEMON: A confrontation apparently between two rival street gangs exploded without warning outside a community center. Several people began swinging boards, people fell to the pavement. The center director describes the horrifying...

MILTON MASSIE, DIRECTOR OF AGAPE COMMUNITY CENTER: It looked like 100 kids. I mean we're talking about kids just all over the place in every direction. There were kids hopping over cars, there were kids that had huge sticks. They were going after each other and it was as if not so much targeted but it was random.

LEMON: 16-year old Derrion Albert was walking home from school when all hell broke loose around him. A board smashed him on the back of his head and then he collapsed and if he wasn't dead then, he soon would be. Derrion Albert, honor student, churchgoer, football player, was killed on a Thursday afternoon on a Chicago street for no apparent reason at all.

JOSEPH WALKER, DERRION ALBERT'S GRANDFATHER: Bible class this Tuesday night. Church, Sunday. I had no trouble out of my grandson whatsoever. This thing that happened to him is so horrific that we just don't know what we're going to do. Because we lost a really dear friend and my grandson. He was a blessed child.

LEMON: Well police are using the tape and other evidence to try and identify the people who might have killed Derrion. Jane Miller of Chicago affiliate WGN has the latest on a police news conference that happened just a short time ago.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Investigation is ongoing right now. We're still conducting interviews, we're still trying to put pieces together right now.

JANE MILLER, WGN AFFILIATE NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Chicago police asking for the public's help tonight in identifying the group of people who savagely beat 16 year old Derrion Albert Thursday in the Roseland neighborhood. The Fenger High School Junior was on his way home from school when a group armed with two by fours attacked him near this community center in the 300 block of W. 100 and 11th St.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's still too early to talk about suspects and things of that nature right now.

MILLER: The honor roll student was beaten with wooden planks, punched and kicked. He later died of his injuries. Classmates of Derrion said dozens watched and did nothing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But I don't understand how 15 or 16 year old kids, how you can just stand over someone's body and just constantly beat them and stomp them to death.

MILLER: The video captured from the scene has helped authorities identify some of the attackers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Detectives have been canvassing the area, reviewing video and evidence and conducting interviews.

MILLER: Police aren't saying whether Thursday's attack was gang related however family members say the teen was targeted because he refused to join a gang. Today a makeshift memorial at the scene appears to have been torched leaving even more questions as to whom had that much hate in Derrion and why.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: To go and burn a memorial after such a tragedy, that just speaks for itself, what kind of people they are.

LEMON: Jane Miller from WGN in Chicago.

Tonight, the head of Chicago's public schools tells me in a statement that although the incident did not happen in school grounds, he is asking for increased police presence in and around the school. He says, Our priority is providing support to the Albert family, friends and Fenger School community during this tragic time.

A vigil with school, community and faith leaders is being planned for tomorrow. We first met Tio Hardiman over the summer when we went to Chicago to cover the teen violence there. He is the Director of Ceasefire Chicago, a community activist group that works to counter gang culture in the city. Tito joins me tonight from Chicago to talk about this senseless violence that has happened and the death of Derrion Albert.

Tio, I understand that you have been spending time with the mother and have been in close contact with her. She is distraught tonight, she wanted to come on the air but is afraid that she won't be able to handle it.

TIO HARDIMAN, DIRECTOR OF CEASEFIRE CHICAGO: Yes, she couldn't hold up. The whole family is totally emotionally distraught right now, Don, and we're going to talk again tomorrow morning with Derrion's mother.

LEMON: Okay, have you been speaking with the officials in Chicago? With school or with the police department to find out what is going on here? Why this violence?

HARDIMAN: Well what's going on in Fenger High School, you have a lot of young men and women who come from a different area over to Fenger High School and they're getting into it with the guys around the high school and nobody's really mediating the conflicts on the front-end. This young guy Derrion shouldn't have lost his life because he tried to go to officials a few times to try to get help. That's the reason why we have to work on changing behaviors and this has been going on at Fenger high school for the last two years, believe it or not, Don.

LEMON: Here's our understanding, because of some of the housing that they tore down in Chicago Public Housing, that for this reason some of the students were bused to other schools or sent to other schools and they are warring factions at each school and maybe the police department or the school department should have thought about this or should have anticipated this?

HARDIMAN: Yeah, definitely you have to anticipate this because this has happened before. In Chicago's history, in Chicago public schools, this has happened many times before. In an incident with a student at Crane High School a couple years ago, the same thing happened. The guys came in from housing developments and they tried to establish themselves at Crane High School and ended up taking a life. That's what happened over at Fenger High School.

LEMON: Alright, Tio Hardiman, Tio thank you very much and I want to say that Chicago Police held a press conference tonight but I spoke with them earlier and they said they have no suspects, no persons of interest and no formal charges in this and they're still looking into, they're using their video, again our thanks to Tio Hardiman from Ceasefire in Chicago. We're going to continue this story in Chicago's deadly streets throughout the evening on this broadcast and also we're going to continue to follow over the coming days. Still ahead, this hour though, we'll talk with Chicago alderwoman Carrie Austin about how the city proposes to deal with the street violence perhaps the videotape killing of Derrion Albert will be the wake up call that it needs. It was a three decade cat and mouse game with international police but fugitive filmmaker Roman Polanski was finally nabbed by Swiss police. The Oscar winner was arrested in Zurich last night while on his way to a film festival honoring his work. Now back in the 70's Polanski pleaded guilty to having sex with a thirteen year old girl during a Los Angeles photo shoot but he fled to France before sentencing. The 76-year old director of "Chinatown," "Rosemary's Baby" and "The Pianist" is expected to fight extradition to the United States. And French and Polish diplomats are now rallying to his defense.

Small town, big mystery. At least eight women in Jennings, Louisiana have been found dead in the past few years. The first victim's body was found in May of 2005, the most recent last month. Police have stopped short of saying they have a serial killer but they say there are many similarities that see, to tie the cases together.

The war in Afghanistan: Several polls suggest that support for the war is falling here at home. The Secretary of Defense says that America will pay dearly if it fails there. Plus, Bill Richardson, an ally of the Clintons for years but in 2008 he backed Barack Obama over Hillary. For at least one Clinton, the bridge was burned.

And we continue to ask questions in the arrest of film director Roman Polanksi. The sex case had shadowed him for years, taking a twist this weekend. Also send us your comments, here's how you do it, any of those sites right there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Iran's Revolutionary Guard says it test fired short range missiles today and in an in your face move just two days after President Obama and the leaders of France and Great Britain went public with news that Iran had been hiding an Iranium enrichment plant. Defense Secretary Robert Gates told our John King at CNN State of the Union that economic and diplomatic pressure will have a better chance at changing Iran's policies than taking military action.

In Afghanistan, the weekend has proved to be a deadly one for NATO's International Military Force. 6 soldiers have been killed including two Americans in separate incidents. One died from a roadside bomb blast and the other form an insurgent attack. Three French troops and one British soldier were also killed.

This comes as President Obama considers what should America's strategy be in Afghanistan, the U.S. Military Commander General Stanley McChrystal has asked for more troops. Speaking on CNN's John King, Defense Secretary Robert Gates discussed what failure in Afghanistan would mean.

ROBERT GATES, U.S. DEFENSE SECRETARY: Failure in Afghanistan would be a huge setback to the United States. Taliban and Al Qaeda as far as they're concerned defeated one superpower. For them to be seen to defeat a second, I think would be a catastrophic consequences in terms of energizing the extremist movement, Al Qaeda recruitment, operations, fundraising and so on. I think it would be a huge setback to the United States.

LEMON: And Defense Secretary said setting a timeline and/or exit strategy for U.S. forces in Afghanistan would be a strategic mistake. President Barack Obama came into office with a lot on his plate and he has taken a lot of criticism. Now he's offering his side of the story. Let's see what he had to say just last night and his remarks to the Congressional Black Caucuses in Washington.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So we are by no means the first generation of Americans to be tested, but tested we have been. Most recently we've been tested by an economic crisis unlike anything we've ever seen since the Great Depression. Now I have to say that some folks seem to have forgotten just how bad things were when I took office. They seem to be exercising some selective memory so let's just take a stroll down memory lane.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well the President goes on to talk about the economy he inherited, the collapse of the auto industry, clearly responding to his critics. I'm joined now by our very own Mark Preston, CNN's Political Editor and there's April Ryan here as well, a regular here, she's a White House Correspondent for American Urban Radio networks, a lot to talk about tonight guys, April President Obama has a lot going on over here and overseas, the War on Afghanistan is only getting worse and will be a major issue for the administration so what is the strategy if any, do we know now in Afghanistan?

APRIL RYAN, WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well the strategy is to try and prevent Al Qaeda and extremists to do another 9-11 type of attack on the U.S. soil but the issue is the fact that Afghanistan is going to be a tough fought battle. That battle is somewhat like Iraq in a way, where you're not going to have a military win. It's going to be several approaches to this; a political approach as well as a military approach and even to try and put a timeline on how long troops are going to be there is wrong because again, just like Iraq, the questions were if you did that, terrorists would sit and wait for it.

LEMON: Here's the issue. We're not hearing specifics though, April, about it and that's what people wondering. Many people voted for him because they thought he was going to get the troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq and given a time line and then also how many troops should be left there, how long should they be deployed. But so far, no answers, and the American people said they want to know.

RYAN: Well, he did. He said he's going to end the war in Iraq. There's a refocus from Iraq into Afghanistan.

He talked about Afghanistan when he was running for president, but he did not really get into what he was going to do. Now we know that there is a chance of more troops. The president is not necessarily happy about that and he's not pushing for that right now, but it is on the table. And the possibilities are there.

LEMON: Ok. All right. We need to hear some specifics, though, coming from the administration.

Let's move on now to domestic issues and our Mark Preston. Mark, you know of course, number one is really the economy, but also health care, very high up on the meter here and the administration needs to focus on that and get that done. What's going on?

MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Don, of course, the economy is very much tied to health care, which is President Obama's number one signature domestic issue. You know, certainly outside of the economy and getting us back on track.

But right now let me just throw some numbers at you, Don. $100 million has been spent in the past nine months just on health care ads that are running in television stations across the country trying to convince these voters to put pressure on their lawmakers to support health care reform or to push back against this health care reform.

Here in Washington, D.C. President Obama himself is lobbying very hard lawmakers individually, trying to get them on board. This week the Senate Finance Committee, Don, is going to meet again. They're going to try to continue through this arduous process of trying to produce a bill. But bottom line, this is not going to really take shape until we hit the senate floor, and that's where we're really going to see a health care bill.

Now, it's anyone's guess on what's in the health care bill. But the fact of the matter is we will see a health care bill and the administration's telling us right now, that Thanksgiving is their new date.

Remember, they wanted it done by August.

LEMON: All right. So it keeps moving back. We shall see.

Hang on both of you. With all of this going on, the Republicans are rallying with one mission in mind and that's to take back Congress next year and the White House in 2012.

Top party leaders met again this weekend, Mark and April. I want you to listen to Governor Charlie Crist of Florida.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHARLIE CRIST (R), FLORIDA: I think the people wanted a change. I think it was that simple. They wanted a change back in 1976. Do you remember? Richard Nixon had been president -- that ended. Gerald Ford took over. The people decided they wanted a change.

They got one, Jimmy Carter. Four years later they took care of business, Ronald Reagan. It may happen again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. He's predicting that for the next election; that President Obama will be voted out of office in the same way that Jimmy Carter was. So that the president will be a one-termer. Mark, those are strong words from the Florida governor who himself hopes to be in the Senate in 2011. What's the state of the Republican Party right now? And what do you make of his comments?

PRESTON: Well, Don, first off Charlie Crist we should point out -- he was very supportive of president Obama's economic stimulus package much to the chagrin of many Republicans earlier this year.

But look, the Republican party really seems to have regained its footing after getting knocked off in the November election. I'll tell you their greatest strength right now is also their greatest weakness, Don. They don't have a leader to rally around, but when a party is rebuilding -- as we're seeing with the Republican Party right now -- that's not such a bad thing because it allows a lot of voices to come in, try to put out what they believe is the future for the party and eventually someone is going to step up and that someone will be the next nominee for the Republican nomination in 2012.

LEMON: really quickly -- you mentioned Charlie Crist -- I want to get back. Is this just posturing on his part that he supported the economic package?

PRESTON: Well, I mean, look as you said, he is running for senate down in Florida, so he certainly wants to win. He needs conservatives back on his side.

LEMON: All right April, I'll give you the last word. How is the White House defending itself against what the Republicans are saying this weekend?

RYAN: They're trying to make it happen with health care reform, the economy, and trying to keep the homeland safe.

LEMON: Well, that's it. Very short.

Thank you, mark and April. Have a great weekend. Mark, we're going to buy you a neck tie, ok?

PRESTON: You don't like the new look?

LEMON: No. It's fine. Just having a little fun with you; we like variety around here. We appreciate it guys.

See you next weekend.

RYAN: Bye-bye.

LEMON: Roman Polanski, arrested in Europe on charges stemming from a conviction in a sex case involving a 13-year-old girl more than 30 years ago. We're digging deeper into this case.

And we told you about that brutal beating in Chicago three days ago. We'll talk to the neighborhood's alderwoman about what is going on there.

Taking the fight against HIV and AIDS to Washington, D.C. streets; actor Blair Underwood opens a new free clinic there. He's going to join us live to tell us more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right. Back to a story we've been following here on CNN since it happened. Celebrity fugitive Roman Polanski has finally been caught after more than three decades on the run. The Oscar-winning director was nabbed in Switzerland on his way to collect a lifetime achievement award.

Back in 1977, Polanski pleaded guilty to having sex with a drugged-up 13-year-old girl in Los Angeles, but he fled to France before sentencing. He's expected to fight extradition back to the United States.

Let's get some perspective now on this from Tom O'Neil, senior editor of "In Touch Weekly." Thank you, sir, for joining us. Exactly what happened between Polanski and the teen back in 1977 that led to this? Him fleeing and to this?

TOM O'NEIL, SENIOR EDITOR, IN TOUCH WEEKLY: It's a really, really sordid story of -- he is asked to be a guest editor of French Vogue magazine and takes picture. He invites this girl 13 years old over to Jack Nicholson's house actually where he was staying at. He got her in the hot tub and gave her champagne, Quaaludes and seduced her.

In a way when you look back, that seems so sordid. But he ended up serving jail time. He served 42 days for psychiatric observation. And what the crux of the whole case is, he thought that was the time served. When he got out, he found out there may be more, so he fled.

LEMON: Again, he was married to Sharon Tate. And remember Sharon Tate was murdered by Charles Manson and that whole group. Some say that's when he went off the deep end really and may have lost it a little bit that led to this.

Why the arrest now? He's traveled to Switzerland before. Why now?

O'NEIL: Yes, he has a house there. This is really interesting. It's mind-boggling why they're still pursuing this.

I thought back in 2003 this was pretty much resolved when he was trying to get to Hollywood for the Oscars. His victim publicly went on Larry King and forgave him. It looked like a deal was worked out with the court behind the scenes, but he didn't pursue.

Then in 2005 an international warrant for his arrest was issued, which is different than just an American based one. And we found out this case was still going on and now this arrest at Zurich.

It just seems as if the prosecutors in Los Angeles won't let go this many years later.

LEMON: We have to run, so yes or no. You think he could have got this behind him and had he come back to the U.S. earlier, it would have been over by now?

O'NEIL: Absolutely with no additional jail time.

LEMON: Thank you Tom. Have a good evening.

O'NEIL: Yes. You too.

LEMON: Fighting aids on the front lines. Actor Blair Underwood opens a free clinic in Washington and joins us live to tell us more about it.

And later all the video sensation; Canadian college students put their own spin on the Black-Eyed Peas' "I got a feeling." They're coming up, the people who -- the producers of this thing. We're going to talk to them.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We could be closer to a cure for the AIDS virus. For the first time a trial vaccine is showing some success. Scientists say it protected 1 in 3 people from getting HIV in a large study in Thailand.

Researchers used two vaccines that worked in different ways in the study. There will be more tests, of course, but the news is encouraging in the medical community.

Meantime in Washington, actor Blair Underwood has opened an HIV/AIDS clinic bearing his name, the Blair Underwood Health Care Center. It will provide advance medical care specifically for HIV positive clients.

There he is, Blair Underwood, he joins me tonight from Los Angeles to talk about the fight against HIV and AIDS. Thank you so much for joining us tonight. How did you get involved in this? Why did you want to do this?

BLAIR UNDERWOOD, ACTOR: A couple of reasons. First of all, Don, thanks for having me on tonight. My interest in HIV and AIDS really started about 20 years ago through my work in South Africa, an organization I co-founded with other actors and entertainers, called Artists for a New South Africa. And seeing the devastation of children especially and how many had been orphaned and how that country had been really affected, it really opened my eyes.

I started with an AHF, AIDS Healthcare Foundation, about two years ago, and they're the largest nonprofit AIDS organization in the United States. I started to look at the statistics bottom line.

LEMON: Especially in D.C.

UNDERWOOD: Especially in D.C. which is the epicenter of HIV and AIDS right now. But the statistics knowing that is the leading cause of death for black women blew my mind; the fact that heterosexual transmission in D.C. is on the rise and is the leading cause for African-Americans. So you know, it's time to broaden the narrative. I can't believe in 2009 people are still -- it's still stigmatized.

LEMON: Yes. You took the words out of my mouth, and especially in the African-American community. You talk about HIV and AIDS people immediate associate it with being gay.

But really now, gay people of course are still being affected by it, but it's now a black disease, a black female disease; the numbers among that demographic really increasing.

So what do you say to people about the stigma and about getting over that? Do something about it, change your mindset?

UNDERWOOD: That's why I wanted to step up. We don't have the luxury anymore not to be quiet about it. And when you look at -- listen, I have an aunt on my wife's side who has two daughters. One died from AIDS about ten years ago. She had a blood transfusion. The other daughter for lifestyle reasons contracted HIV/AIDS. These are two women.

The numbers if you look at statistics, it's beyond the pale of just being, you know, ignorant to it. And it's happening to -- whatever the mode of transmission is, if you're gay, if you're straight, if you're a child, if it's a blood transfusion, whatever it is, we can't afford to be silent about it anymore.

That's why this clinic was opened by AHF which I'm excited about. And by the way, in addition to being a clinic for anybody who needs to be tested for free, who needs treatment for free, it's also a pharmacy. Anything you need, Tylenol, Aspirin, whatever you need, 96 cents of every dollar once the cost are taken care of goes to the treatment and care of people with HIV and AIDS. It's a win-win situation.

LEMON: Blair Underwood. Thank you so much. It's called the Blair Underwood Healthcare Center. And then there's freehivtest.net and Blair Underwood's picture there, it says "Man up."

And Blair, all the ladies in the studio are swooning right now. So thank you. They really are.

UNDERWOOD: Hey listen. I'd like to give a shout out to everybody on my Facebook and Twitter. They've been so supportive of this clinic and this whole issue. So thank you to them.

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Blair Underwood, thank you so much. It's called the Blair Underwood Health Care Center. And then there's a freehivtest.net and Blair Underwood's pictures there (INAUDIBLE).

And, Blair, all the ladies in the studio are swooning right now. So thank you. They really are.

All right. I appreciate your time. BLAIR UNDERWOOD, ACTOR & AIDS ACTIVIST: Can I give a shout-out to everybody on Facebook and Twitter. They've been so supportive of this clinic and this whole issue, so thank you them

LEMON: Yes, we love the Facebook/Twitter community, social networking sites.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes, man. All right.

LEMON: Say again. I'm sorry.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, no, no. I'm just saying --

LEMON: No, someone on the control room said they're friending you right now, just so you know.

Thank you, Blair Underwood.

UNDERWOOD: I love it.

LEMON: We'll see you next time.

UNDERWOOD: All right, Don.

LEMON: Explosive gang violence in Chicago. A 16-year-old is dead, the crime caught on tape. We're asking a city leader when will it end?

And later, traffic on the Ohio River is at a standstill after a lock fails.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: OK. This story, everyone, though, we're just talking about the social networks sites. Everyone is talking about on those sites. So if you're just joining us, Chicago's deadly streets have claimed another young victim. It happened Thursday outside a community center when two rival gangs exploded in violence. A warning.

So even before it was over, 16-year-old honor student Derrion (ph) Albert lay dying on the pavement. He was smashed in the head with a board, then stomped on while he was down. His mother was so grief stricken she can hardly speak.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANJANETTE ALBERT, SON FATALLY BEATEN: It's hard. You hear about that happening to other people's kids. Never think that that's something that will happen to yours.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, Anjanette Albert was going to join us tonight, but she is so distraught she said that she could not fathom even trying to get on television or even leaving her home. But Chicago alderwoman, Carrie Austin, represents the 34th Ward and she joins us by telephone. Good to talk to you. Wish it was about a better subject. I was there a month ago, and there was a shooting, a young lady -- what -- four doors from your home and now this.

CARRIE AUSTIN, 34TH WARD (via telephone): Right. Right.

LEMON: What do you make of this?

AUSTIN: Oh, it's -- you know, what words could I use now, you know, to even describe this situation? How could kids be so prone to violence that they would do something this horrific? What's going through their minds that they would even participate in something like this?

And to a young man that did nothing to them, I mean, for them to be a mob action was I think everybody wants to lay that at the feet of this was gang-related. What kind of gang would do this to you? I mean, how can you be a part of a gang, and this is what they do, this is what they allow to happen to you?

This is just ridiculous. It is just absolutely ridiculous that we're not teaching our children any kind of conflict resolution. Is it the parents' fault?

The boy had a great mother. It's not her fault. He was an honor student. What more are we supposed to ask of him? This makes no sense.

I can't say that the police isn't doing their job, but I still have to ask this day, Jody Weis (ph), where are you? Why are you not patrolling my streets, too? Why are you not working with the schools? Why are you not working with the security of the school? Where are you? The people out here are doing everything that they know how to do.

LEMON: Alderwoman Austin, you're usually very mild-mannered and it's obvious that you're outraged by this. And I want to tell our viewers when she says Jody Weis (ph), Jody Weis is the police commissioner -- police superintendent in Chicago. We also reached out to Jody's police department, they said they have no public statement at this time.

So, alderwoman, I asked you then and I'll ask you now, it's not that violence isn't happening in the other cities, but to the degree that's it's been happening among young people in Chicago, it's unbelievable and it's different and higher than most cities. What is different about Chicago than other cities that Chicago cannot clamp down on youth violence?

AUSTIN: Well, I still think it would start at the top, which would be the charge of our superintendent, our police superintendent. You cannot tell me that you want FBI personnel, and you do not have any strategies for these type of mob actions.

You cannot tell me that you don't have some kind of strategies for these things of things going on in a school. It's only happening in my community. No, it's not. It happens in others.

LEMON: What about -- what about community and personal responsibility, though, alderwoman.

AUSTIN: We, the community, do take responsibility. The parent has taken responsibility. So does the police. I can say that my commanders both five and 22, because when you cross over the track, it's in five.

LEMON: Yes.

AUSTIN: If you stay on the west side of the street, it's 22. So it is happening on both sides of the streets.

LEMON: Yes.

AUSTIN: So my police officers, my commanders that are out here, my deputy chief that's out here, Alexander, who's doing a great job, I can't say that about them.

LEMON: OK, alderwoman. Chicago Alderwoman Carrie Austin represents the 34th Ward. We appreciate you joining us tonight, and we will talk with you soon. As a matter of fact, I'll call you after the show to talk about what can be done to keep this from happening. Thank you.

AUSTIN: All right.

LEMON: A year's worth of rain in six hours overwhelms the Philippines. And later, Governor Bill Richardson worked for the Clinton White House but famously endorsed Hillary Clinton's chief rival for the Democratic nomination.

So has everything been forgiven here? What do you think? We're going to talk about it.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The "Katrina" of the Philippines. That's how President Gloria Arroyo describes the massive flooding that has pummeled her island nation and its capital.

A tropical storm dropped as much as a month's worth of rain in just a few short hours leaving destruction and despair everywhere. At least 75 people have been killed in what's being called the worst flooding in decades. Dozens are still missing.

The U.S. military is helping with the storm victims, and soldiers have provided inflatable boats and helped rescue survivors who have spotted from the air. There are an estimated 300,000 people who have been displaced by this storm.

Let's check in now with CNN's Jacqui Jeras for a word on that, Jacqui, and also the commute tomorrow. That is horrific.

JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it really is. That storm is out of there now, but it is heading towards Vietnam and it's the equivalent, we think, of a Category One storm when it makes landfall on Tuesday.

Now here at home, we're looking at severe weather across the Great Lakes. A tornado watch has been issued that includes Milwaukee down towards Chicago and down towards the Springfield and Bloomington areas. So be aware of that. Make sure you've got your NOAA weather radio on before you go to bed tonight.

It's all part of a very vigorous, very strong storm system that is bringing blustery conditions from the really upper Midwest and into the Great Lakes and eventually make its way into the northeast. Wind gusts could be as strong as 50, maybe 60 miles per hour, so we're concerned about power outages and incredible waves expected on Lake Michigan could be reaching 10 to 18 feet.

Cooler temperatures back behind it, though, so this is going to be a pleasant change in the air mass. So a nice, refreshing change. If you're going to be traveling for tomorrow, do expect airport delays especially in those Midwestern cities -- Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, Minneapolis and Cincinnati due to that wind. We'll also have a little bit of fog out to the west. San Francisco and Los Angeles looking for some patchy fog delays-- Don.

LEMON: All right. Jacqui, thank you. I'll see you next week, OK?

JERAS: OK.

LEMON: Traffic on the Ohio River is still at a standstill. A lock break occurred today near Warsaw, Kentucky, according to the Army Corps of Engineers. All river traffic is shut down in both directions. A corps spokesman calls the break catastrophic for commerce. Engineers are on the way to the scene. It's not known how long river traffic will be halted on the river.

Governor, congressman, U.N. ambassador and the first major Hispanic presidential candidate, Bill Richardson's resume is nothing short of inspiring. He is a Latino pioneer. And I've got a feeling that you're going to like this. We sure do.

It's viral sensation. We're going to talk to the producers live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right. Right here on this program, we're profiling Latinos who overcame obstacles and shattered stereotypes to make history. It's part of our series, "Pioneros: Latino Firsts."

In the political world, Bill Richardson's life has been full of firsts, including becoming the first major Hispanic presidential candidate. Throw in two terms as governor of New Mexico, U.N. ambassador, Energy secretary, seven terms in the House and well, you pretty much get the idea.

I recently sat down with him at the governor's office in Santa Fe.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON (voice-over): Speaking Spanish and plain English.

GOVERNOR BILL RICHARDSON (D), NEW MEXICO: I'm formally announcing my candidacy for president of the United States.

LEMON: On January 21st, 2007, Democrat New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson announced on his Web site his candidacy for president of the United States, admittedly by his own mother it didn't last long.

RICHARDSON: She jokes about my presidential race, about how short it was, but, you know, she has given me so much.

LEMON (on camera): Did you say, mom, at least I did it. Come on. Give me some credit?

RICHARDSON: Well, I did. You know, at one point, we were on the phone, and we were speaking Spanish and she said to me, "Son, are you still governor? I said, yes, no one has thrown me out yet. In fact, mom, you know, I announced for president. She said president of what?

LEMON (voice-over): What got Richardson more attention than his one- year anemic run and perhaps in his entire political career was his endorsement of then Democratic upstart and likely presidential nominee Barack Obama over long-time friend and political ally Hillary Clinton.

RICHARDSON: Barack Obama will be a great and historic president.

LEMON: Richardson's friend and former boss, Hillary Clinton's husband, Bill, has yet to forgive him.

(on camera): Did you repair that relationship? Is it patched up?

RICHARDSON: With President Clinton? No, no. He's still mad at me. With Secretary of State Clinton, we kind of repaired it. But no, with President Clinton, he's not happy with me, but that's all right.

LEMON: Did you reach out to him?

RICHARDSON: Well, no -- you know, we both need to reach out to each other, and it hasn't happened. I'm fine with it.

LEMON (voice-over): Even before serving as President Clinton's U.N. ambassador and Energy secretary, Richardson was a staffer to Henry Kissinger and a congressman from New Mexico. He says he owes all of it, especially his standing as the first viable Hispanic presidential candidate, to his father.

RICHARDSON: Well, my father wasn't born in America. He was born in Nicaragua, and he always felt the complex that he wasn't born in America. So as his first-born, he wanted me to be born in the United States. So he made a special trip to see his sister in California so I would be born in America, and we returned to Mexico where he was posted there.

LEMON: His Mexican-born mother is still inspiring him.

RICHARDSON: My mother, who would only speak to me in Spanish, always said to me, hijo, se fuerte (speaking in Spanish).

Basically she said be strong. Have strong opinions. Don't shy away.

LEMON: He was a great baseball player in high school and later at Boston Tufts University. But unlike some minorities of his generation, his edge didn't come from sports.

(on camera): Why did you choose public service?

RICHARDSON: I felt I had an advantage because I was international. I spoke two languages. I loved international affairs and foreign policy. I was a late bloomer in politics. I ran for president at my fraternity house in college, and I liked the power that that gave me to do good things.

LEMON (voice-over): Now, nearly four decades after earning a degree in law and diplomacy from Tufts, he is still at it. Recently an early contender as the new Obama administration's Commerce secretary, but he bowed out because of a federal investigation alleging pay-to-play dealings as governor. He was cleared of any wrongdoing just days before I sat down with him.

(on camera): How do you feel about it?

RICHARDSON: Well, I feel good because it's behind me. This investigation kept me from being secretary of Commerce. I feel vindicated. We did nothing wrong. It's like a cloud is lifted over you.

LEMON (voice-over): But don't look just yet for this avid horseman to ride off into the sunset. He's governor until 2011.

(on camera): Would you take a position in the administration?

RICHARDSON: Probably not. I mean, I -- you never say never, but right now I'm content with my life. I've got a year and a half to go as governor.

I've said to my wife, who's always followed me in every job, this next job I have you decide. And she doesn't want to go back to Washington. I've also said that what I want to do, something that I've aspired to all my life, I want to visit every single major league baseball stadium and decide which is the best. I want to drive myself. I haven't driven in a while.

LEMON (voice-over): Bill Richardson, always the pioneer. That's why he's a Latino first.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Enjoyed sitting down with him. Second time I got to sit down with him. Thank you very much for that, Bill Richardson. Appreciate it.

And next week, as we continue our series on "Latino First," we'll be talking with the first Hispanic to hold a cabinet level position in the United States, in the government in the United States. His name is Lauro Cavazos. He served as a secretary of Education under President Reagan and the first President Bush.

Coming to CNN in October, Latino America's first, "Latino in America," I should say. Stories you will see only here on CNN.

And unfortunately, we have sad news from the worlds of politics and journalism to report to you tonight. Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist, William Safire has died. Safire wrote a twice weekly column for "The New York Times" from 1973 until 2005.

He was a conservative voice on the liberal editorial page when he gets first Pulitzer Prize for a commentary in 1978. And before joining "The Times" Safire wrote speeches for President Richard Nixon. He was also a novelist and a popular commentator on the use and frequent misuse of the English language.

"The New York Times" quotes a friend who says Safire died of pancreatic cancer. William Safire was 79 years old.

OK. So this took two hours.

Also to students, just two takes and no edits, we got a feeling that the producers are going to be here live in just moments.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: So if you think making a music video takes a professional crew, lots of time and a whole lot of money, you're probably right. But not for Quebec, Montreal at the university there.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, YOUTUBE UNIVERSITY OF QUEBEC AT MONTREAL)

MUSIC: Here we come, here we go. We got to rock, rock, rock. Easy come, easy go. Now we -- fill the shock, body rock.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: It's a cool little video. Almost 200 students participated. It took about a month of planning, two hours to set up. They shot it twice. Second one, they did it without edit.

So, let's meet the filmmakers. Let's meet the brains behind this. Luc-Oliver Cloutier and Maria Eve Hebert, right? -- is joining us live from Skype.

I did OK, right? Thanks for joining us, guys.

Luc, where did you come up with this idea?

LUC-OLIVER CLOUTIER, CO-DIRECTOR, "I GOTTA FEELING" VIDEO: We just saw that business school called ACE (INAUDIBLE) here in Montreal but also in France. And then we said, hey, we're students in communication and our school specialized in communication. And we asked to make it up. And also, we saw it and set it up. It looked to be fun to create something like that. So just for the experience and for fun, we decided to make our own. And now --

LEMON: Yes. So, Maria, were you surprised by the reaction? And are you surprised that so many people accepted to do it and then the reaction now?

MARIE EVE HEBERT, CO-DIRECTOR, "I GOTTA FEELING" VIDEO: Yes, that's kind of crazy, actually. We didn't expect this at all, but we're happy about it. But that's amazing. That's surprising.

LEMON: Yes. What's next for you guys?

CLOUTIER: Some people ask us if we want to make other video (ph). Maybe we'll make some for like -- for companies for Christmas parties, but now we're seeing on television and after that we end up in May so we will have to find a job in television.

LEMON: All right. Well, I'm sure you're probably going to get some offers. Congratulations to both of you on this. You're like now -- what is it? Weird Al (ph), who used to do redo videos. This is the new generation of that. So, congratulations and thanks for joining us. Have a good evening.

HEBERT: Thank you.

CLOUTIER: Thank you very much.

HEBERT: Bye-bye.

LEMON: All right. We're back after this.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right. So goodbyes or even so longs are never really easy for me. I'm a big softy. So, I have to say goodbye to someone who is -- who I really love. I don't tell her that because it will be kind of weird and her husband might think that I'm a little nuts.

But we're losing a very valuable member of the team, the glue to our team, Jennifer Bernstein Adams, Tate's mom, Bo's wife. She is leaving to go to "In Session" which is one of our sister Network, right, for HLN. No, it's not HLN. "In Session" is part of the Court TV, truTV (ph), right?

Yes. So are you excited, Jen? Now's your moment.

JERAS: I can't hear her yet.

LEMON: OK.

So, she said she's excited. But I do have to say -- I mean, Jen is amazing. She really is the glue.

JERAS: Yes.

LEMON: And all the good stuff that you saw on the show, you can attribute it to her. And all the bad stuff, the screw-ups, it was me. Right?

So, Jen, we love you. We're going to miss you.

JERAS: She's great.

LEMON: Come back at any time. She's always a leader here.

JERAS: She's a good friend, too.

LEMON: Yes. So I'll say, Jen, is I'm so glad we had this time together.

I'm Don Lemon. That's Jacqui Jeras. Last show for Jennifer Bernstein. So long, Jen. We're going to miss you.

JERAS: Good luck, Jen.

LEMON: "STATE OF THE UNION WITH JOHN KING" begins right now.