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Advice for Job Seekers; Meeting of Minds on Afghan War; Public Option on the March

Aired September 30, 2009 - 14:02   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Pushing forward, it's no secret General McChrystal wants more troops on top of the buildup the president ordered months ago and which is still under way. But other voices say it's time to scale back.

CNN Senior Political Analyst Gloria Borger is watching the back-and- forth here.

So, Gloria, a lot of folks attending this meeting. It's really high power at the highest levels here, folks at the highest levels.

So, what can you expect the president's think tank -- what can we expect from them?

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: Wouldn't you like to be a fly on the wall in that room?

LEMON: Absolutely.

BORGER: I think we can expect the kind of discussion that has been going on over the last recent weeks. I have talked to folks both who have been in the room and folks who have been briefed by people in the room. And what I'm hearing is that these are very intense conversations, Don, very thoughtful.

The president really grilling people about why they disagree with him. So, they have to defend their point of view -- or not necessarily disagree with them, but making them defend their point of view.

He has not told anybody what he's going to do, largely because he probably has not decided at this point. So, it's really, I'm told by somebody, kind of impressive sessions, where people really give their unvarnished opinions to the president.

LEMON: OK. You know what? You wrote an article for CNN.com which is very interesting here, where you sort of compared this to the Bush team and the so-called surge in Iraq.

And you said the only difference here was that there was an ideology. But you said, "Even before today's session, it's clear the White House has already decided one thing: it's going to stick to its mission. As the president said in his March speech and repeated again yesterday, the mission is to disrupt, dismantle, and defeat al Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan and prevent their return to the country."

But the big question is, what's the strategy in doing that, right, Gloria?

BORGER: Right. I think that is the big question. The president used those same exact words yesterday. So, the mission is clear, but they're taking a look at the conditions on the ground, they're taking a look at the fact some say that al Qaeda has moved to Pakistan, that they're really no longer in Afghanistan.

The election of Hamid Karzai really calls into question his credibility. There's an awful lot of corruption, as you know, in Afghanistan. And so, there is a sense among some that these are changing conditions that really need to be taken a look at. One of those people is the vice president of the United States, who thinks that we really ought to go from a counterinsurgency strategy to a counterterrorism strategy, stop the nation-building in Afghanistan and focus instead on intelligence and Special Forces to root out al Qaeda in both Afghanistan and Pakistan.

LEMON: Well, I hear that Stanley McChrystal is expected to send his request any day for more resources to combat the insurgency in Afghanistan. So, I'm wondering if that request, does it depend on what happens in this meeting today?

BORGER: Well, I think there are going to be more meetings. So, the president has made it very clear, and this is a message that's relayed by his staff whenever you talk to them, that he is not going to be making a decision quickly. And, you know, as Secretary Gates pointed out to John King on Sunday, remember, George Bush took three months to decide on the surge in Iraq.

So, I don't think we're going to get a resolution of anything today. But, you know, it's not all or nothing either.

General McChrystal has asked for as much as 40,000 troops. Well, the president could say, I'm going to give you 15,000 and then we're going to do some counterterrorism efforts. So, I don't think necessarily that the outcome is going to be as clear cut as, yes, he's going to go with McChrystal, or, yes, he's going to go with Vice President Biden. I think these things are always much more complicated and nuanced than that.

LEMON: And an interesting article, if you want to read one, CNN.com. Our senior political analyst, Gloria Borger, has a column on there.

BORGER: Thank you. Thanks a lot.

LEMON: Thank you, Gloria. We appreciate it.

Now to the plan in Iraq. Well, it can be summed up in just two words -- pull out. And the plan is on track.

The senior U.S. commander there told Congress today another 4,000 U.S. troops will pull out in the month of October. And that will leave roughly 120,000 GIs in country, all of whom are due out by the end of 2011.

Well, the 261st Signal Brigade of the Delaware Army National Guard is already home. Waiting in Dover last hour with a speech and maybe a hug was Vice President Joe Biden, the father of Delaware Guardsman and State Attorney General Beau Biden. The 261st had been in Iraq for one year.

And then there's Iran. Tomorrow, in Geneva, Iran's top nuclear negotiator will sit down with the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, plus Germany. The issue, of course, Iran's cat and mouse game with the U.N. and the West over nukes.

Iran insists it is not making nuclear weapons, but its long overdue admission just last week of a second uranium enrichment plant only heightens suspicion. Now even Russia says tougher sanctions may be inevitable.

A small U.S. outpost in the South Pacific, American Samoa, is in a state of shock after a tsunami swept ashore. The big wave killed dozens of people there and also in other parts of the Samoan islands and Tonga.

The devastation, massive in some areas, as we see in these pictures from our iReporters. That's from one of our iReporters. We spoke to him last hour.

And President Obama moved quickly to declare American Samoa a federal disaster area. Members of the Hawaii National Guard and experts with FEMA are heading there, too.

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We're pushing forward now.

The heated issue and the just as heated debate over health care reform. The public option has suffered a defeat in the Senate, but Democratic supporters vow the fight isn't over, not by a long shot.

CNN's Jim Acosta explains what happened and what's likely to happen next.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. Rockefeller?

SEN. JAY ROCKEFELLER (D), WEST VIRGINIA: Aye.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. Rockefeller, aye.

Mr. Conrad?

SEN. KENT CONRAD (D), NORTH DAKOTA: No.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Mr. Conrad, no.

JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): This time the nos came from Democrats who joined Republicans to defeat the public option, keeping it out of the Senate Finance Committee's crucial version of health care reform. The committee's chairman argued there's no way the option could beat a filibuster in the Senate.

SEN. MAX BAUCUS (D-MT), SENATE FINANCE COMMITTEE CHAIRMAN: No one has been able to show me how we can count up to 60 votes with a public option in the bill, and thus I am constrained to vote against the amendments.

ACOSTA: Two amendments that would give the uninsured the option of joining a government-run health care plan pitted Democrat against Democrat. Public option supporter Jay Rockefeller cited data from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office that says the provision would save the government $50 billion. A bill without the option, he argued, gives the insurance industry a pass.

ROCKEFELLER: Who comes first, the insurance companies or the American people?

BAUCUS: We all agree on the goal. There's the whole health insurance (INAUDIBLE).

ACOSTA: Republicans also got into the mix with Iowa's Charles Grassley tangling with public option proponent Chuck Schumer over the prospect of government health care.

SEN. CHUCK GRASSLEY (R), IOWA: If you want competition, you don't want the government running everything. The government is not a fair competitor. It's not even a competitor.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So you don't want Medicare.

GRASSLEY: It's a predator.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And I can tell you right now, it would be a disaster. And what's worse, the American people will lose an awful lot of control over their own health care needs.

ACOSTA: Just before watching his amendment go down in defeat, Rockefeller signaled the fight would go on.

ROCKEFELLER: The public option is on the march.

Mr. Chairman?

BAUCUS: No.

ACOSTA: Then a little more than an hour later, Schumer's public option amendment also lost. But the New York senator was also defiant.

SEN. CHARLES SCHUMER (D), NEW YORK: Today the odds went up that there'll be a public option in the bill.

ACOSTA: Liberal health care reform supporters say it was exactly the showdown they wanted.

You wanted this debate, right?

RICHARD KIRSCH, HEALTH CARE FOR AMERICA NOW: We definitely wanted this debate. We didn't want our champions in the Senate to shirk from this. We wanted to lay the sides out very clearly, make it really clear that there was a stark choice here between those who want to continue to leave us at the mercy of the private health insurance industry without any competition and those who say we need a choice.

ACOSTA (on camera): All eyes now will be on Olympia Snowe, the Maine Republican who may offer up an amendment that would call for a trigger, threatening the insurance companies with the public option down the road if the industry doesn't change its ways.

There's a reason why some in Washington call her "President Snowe" these days. It's because health care reform just might be riding on her vote.

Jim Acosta, CNN, Washington.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: All right, Jim.

And to find out more about health care reform and how it affects you where you live, go to our Web site, CNN.com/health.

And we're pushing forward on a major concern of yours, recent arrests of terror suspects. And the burning question, is the nation now at a greater risk of a terrorist attack? That was the topic today in a hearing by the Senate Homeland Security Committee. Among the heavy hitters appearing, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano and FBI Director Robert Mueller.

Committee Chairman Joe Lieberman zeroed in on the recent arrest of an Afghan immigrant charged with plotting to blow up targets in New York City.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. JOSEPH LIEBERMAN (D-CT.), CHAIRMAN, HOMELAND SECURITY COMMITTEE: The Zazi case is the scenario that many of us have worried about and watched out for. A legal permanent resident of America, free, therefore, to travel in and out of our country, going to Pakistan, connecting with al Qaeda. There, receiving training and perhaps directions, and returning to America to join with others here in an attack on New York City.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Now, as we told you yesterday, the man mentioned by Senator Lieberman is Najibullah Zazi. Yesterday, in a New York court, he pleaded not guilty to plotting a bomb attack in the city. He's being held without bail.

New York Police Commissioner Ray Kelly says there's no longer a threat and nothing to fear from Zazi's alleged accomplices. Zazi's next court date is December 3rd.

Police in Nashville have an Amber Alert out for a 5-day-old baby stolen at knife point. Maria Gurrolla says a woman showed up at her door yesterday claiming to be an immigration agent there to arrest her. Instead, the suspect stabbed Gurrolla multiple times and took off with her son.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NORMA RODRIGUEZ, TRANSLATOR FOR MARIA GURROLLA: She says all she can remember is that she went for help. And when she came back, the baby wasn't there anymore and her younger 3-year-old daughter was there.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, the suspect is described as 30-something, heavy set, a white woman with blonde hair.

If you have information, call your local police or the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation. Here's the phone number for you. It's 1- 800-TBI-FIND. Again, 1-800-TBI-FIND.

Another child abduction case out of Tennessee. This one with major international implications.

Christopher Savoie of Franklin, Tennessee, sits in a Japanese jail cell charged with attempted kidnapping after his failed attempt to get back his two children, whom a U.S. court gave custody to him. Well, Savoie's ex-wife took off with the kids to her native Japan, which does not recognize U.S. family court judgments.

If history is a precedent, well, it may be a long time before dad sees his kids again.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTOPHER SAVOIE, FATHER: Never be on the ball field again. You know, the one thing you can't ever get back -- you know, they could give me money, they could give me anything, but they can't take back time. And next week, I won't be playing ball with him, I won't with playing catch with him.

I just won't. That week will never happen again.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Earlier today, Savoie's attorney said his client is waging an uphill battle.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JEREMY MORLEY, ATTORNEY FOR CHRISTOPHER SAVOIE: We have organized two lawyers there, a family lawyer and a top criminal lawyer, to try to get access to him. They may have seen him earlier today. We hope so.

We're waiting for news on that. We're very worried, and it's a terrible situation. It's not right, it's not fair, and this happens frequently with Japan. This is -- I have handled dozens and dozens and dozens of these cases where American kids have been abducted by Japanese parents to Japan, and basically they never get the kids back.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Japan is one of a handful of nations that are not a party to the 1980 Hague Convention on international child abduction.

Time now for top stories.

Are local gun control laws at odds with the Second Amendment? The U.S. Supreme Court and it's newest justice, Sonia Sotomayor, will hear arguments in the case of Chicago's ban on handguns. An appeals court upheld the statute, but gun rights activists say a similar ban in Washington, D.C., was shot down.

If your Toyota or your Lexus is less than five years old, well, you may want to remove the driver's side floor mats. Nearly four million of the vehicles are being recalled over concerns the floor mats could interfere with the accelerator and make your cash. It's the Japanese carmaker's largest recall ever in the United States.

John Travolta is back in a Bahamas courtroom today testifying against a paramedic accused in an alleged shakedown of the actor. Travolta says the man wanted $25 million in hush money following the death of Travolta's son Jett from a seizure earlier this year. He and another defendant have pleaded not guilty.

The N-word, it was put in a coffin and buried, but it is not dead. It's like a vampire. It seems hell bent on living forever, doesn't it?

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We want to update you now on the tsunami in the South Pacific. The big wave killed dozens of people in Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga. Now, as we see in these pictures, the devastation is massive in some areas. Whole villages near the shoreline have disappeared. President Barack Obama moved quickly to declare american Samoa a federal disaster area and members of the Hawaii National Guard and experts with FEMA are heading there right now.

Our iReporters are sending us incredible images from the tsunami. Joining us now for some of those pictures with them is Errol Barnett of CNN International. Some of these pictures, Errol, are the only pictures coming out of the region.

ERROLL BARNETT, CNN INTERNATIONAL IREPORT CORRESPONDENT: That's right, Don, but they've given us a great sense of what people are experiencing. You know, we talk about almost 00 people dead, many are feared missing, you know, children have been washed out to sea. But really, those are just facts and figures. We want to show you the experiences that people have been going through. This is the island of American Samoa. The earthquake hit about just southwest of the island, so the - the southern part of the island was at danger of a tsunami. So if we head down to this town here called Leone, we find iReporter Lance Faletogo who is with his friend, Tagula (ph), and they were surveying the damage of one neighborhood - you can see there, they're right next to the coast. Half of this village was completely wiped away.

Now, they're residents themselves, so they were even in shock as they were walking around this town, but as you listen to them narrate their experience, you hear the disbelief of what they're seeing. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LANCE FALETOGO, CNN IREPORTER: A lot of debris on the roads - glass, rock. If you have a look over here, everything is just completely wiped out.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: And the more we get from iReporters, the - the clearer the picture we have of what took place there in Leone. This was an iReport sent to us by Allison Bilecki (ph), also in Leone, and what you're seeing is one of the bridges on this island that was a major thoroughfare for people to travel. It's now down. And if you take a look at the next image, you see what they're having to do - bring in mass moving vehicles so they can move all of this land out of the way.

Now if we move to the capital of American Samoa, Pago Pago, here is an iReport sent to us from one individual who is driving through the area, and if listen, you can hear the child in the car try to understand what's happening around here. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE (ph): What's mean to the guy? Happening to the guy? Happen to the guy? Happen to the guy? (ph)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BARNETT: And so, we believe what the kid is saying is "What happened to the guy?" as they drive past this vehicle that was smashed. That was sent to us by Manny Lagafuaina. He says many of the phone lines there have been busy as well.

And take a look at these images. You got a sense for the size and scope of this. And these pictures were snapped by an 18-year-old, Alden Tagarino. He said he saw cars being swept out to sea. In fact once the waters receded, he said he could see full bodies laying in the road. But he says he did help out during the tsunami of December 2004 in Sri Lanka, so at least now he feels slightly more confident that he'll be able to help his town and his community get things back together, because, Don, that's where this story moves on from now. The damage has been done, but you have thousands of people now. These are their homes. They've got nowhere to sleep, and they need help, so we want to continue to take in all the video and images from people in American Samoa and tell their stories as they continue to experience this devastation.

LEMON: Yes. And as you heard the president of the United States saying it's a disaster area, sending FEMA and other members here of the US Armed Forces to help out. Thank you very much, Errol. We appreciate that.

And if you want to help the people who's devastated by the tsunami and make a difference, visit our "Impact Your World" page. That's at cnn.com/impact.

You know, this would be a tough math lesson for kids and teachers alike, adding more time to the school day, and in fact the whole school year. Well, you might have heard the president talking about it the other day, but as you can imagine, the plan doesn't get a passing grade from everyone.

Let's bring in CNN's Alina Cho. Alina.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Don. Nine-hour school days, shorter summer breaks? Kids may hate the idea, but the president argues American students are way behind compared to students in other countries, and this, longer school days and a longer school year, is a way to level the playing field.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

STEVE GALLAGHER, PARENT: So we get an extra day!

CHO (voice-over): It's 3:00 in the afternoon, and Steve Gallagher has just picked up his 10-year-old daughter, Sammy, from school, right in the middle of the work day. A longer school day for Sammy, what President Obama wants, means a more convenient day for dad.

STEVE GALLAGHER: It kind of works into our personal schedule. For example, I can then have the ability to pick my daughter up after school as opposed to cutting my work day short.

CHO: The idea is gaining steam. Education Secretary Arne Duncan is touring the country with unconventional allies, the Reverend Al Sharpton and Newt Gingrich, encouraging local districts and states to embrace the idea of longer school days and a longer school year, saying the current system is outdated, a century old, when kids needed summers off to help on the farm.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. This is the right word.

CHO: Duncan says students who thrive are in class longer.

ARNE DUNCAN, EDUCATION SECRETARY: Guess what? They're in school nine hours a day, they're in school on the weekends and they're in school over the summer, and, you know, this is not a new idea. CHO: American students have one of the shortest school years in the world - 180 days versus 195 for most European nations, and 200 for East Asian countries, and US students spend fewer hours a day in the classroom, 35 hours a week. Swedish students are in class 60 hours a week. The nation's largest teacher's union says more seat time is good, but after school programs at school? Better.

RANDI WEINGARTEN, AMERICAN FEDERATION OF TEACHERS: We have them for remediation, we have them for enrichment, we have them for sports, we have them for art, we have them for music - those are really good things.

SAMMY GALLAGHER, STUDENT: Four times four is 16.

CHO: Steve Gallagher is all for longer school days, but summers off?

Some might argue longer school day, longer school year could work to our advantage.

STEVE GALLAGHER: I agree with that, but it's difficult to make that cultural shift within our country on just an edict from the president.

CHO: So what does 10-year-old Sammy think about the president's proposal?

SAMMY GALLAGHER: Well, longer school days usually means more homework, and for a lot of people homework can be very overwhelming in a way.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

CHO (on camera): Something else that could be overwhelming - the cost. The National Taxpayers' Union - a Conservative group - says, yes, it all looks good on paper, but there are a lot of hidden costs involved, like potentially more money for teachers, higher electricity bills when you keep schools open longer. And who's going to foot the bill? Probably taxpayers - Don.

LEMON: Alina, thank you very much for that.

So remember this funeral? I don't know if you guys remember that. It was Detroit. It was 1987. Members of the NAACP, they gathered to symbolically bury the "N" word. They called on people to stop using it in everyday speech and entertainment.

But you know what? The word, it did not die. Now a new leader has stepped forward hoping to put the final nail on the coffin. That leader is only 11 years old. His name is Jonathan McCoy. More than 800,000 people have watched the video of his impassioned speech before his church congregation. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JONATHAN MCCOY, ADVOCATE AGAINST THE "N" WORD: Rather than obliterate this disrespectful term, we have adopted it as a culture phrase. You've heard it. "What's up, my 'N' word!" or maybe you said it, "Get out of my face, 'N' word!" So why are (ph) we taking this word to use it in our everyday language to communicate to or about ourselves.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, you know what? Not only did Jonathan deliver that speech, he wrote it himself, and he joins us right here in the CNN NEWSROOM to talk about it. Why did you want it - why did you want to do this? Why do you want to ban the "N" word, Jonathan?

First of all, good to see you.

MCCOY: Thank you.

LEMON: Why did you want to do it?

MCCOY: Well, because I - well, it started out as a speech competition in Baltimore, Maryland and it was like a week or two before the speech competition and I suppose I wasn't going to be in the competition because I had nothing to write about. But then I got in the shower and I started thinking different words that meant black or black in different languages, and I went to the library and researched what the "N" word meant, and it meant someone who was economically, politically or socially disenfranchised.

LEMON: And so you figured that people were using that word incorrectly, especially the glorifying of it in songs and just everyday talking to people. Did you ever think - did you ever think in a million years that, you know, you doing this and speaking at church, that it would get to this level, that you would have such an impact? Do you even think you're making an impact?

MCCOY: I think I am because there are people who are signing my petition, and I don't think that anyone would sign a petition that they don't believe is right. And I believe that when people use this word, especially African-American rappers, that it's taking away from the civil rights movement and what leaders such as Marcus Garvey and martin Luther king and Rosa Parks stood for, and there is nothing civil or right about being called the "N" word.

LEMON: Well, I want to ask you about this because, as you know, some rappers and some people say use the word, especially when you say it, you know, with the "A" or "AH" or whatever you want to put it on the end, that it's taking back the word or taking the stigma off the word. You don't believe that?

MCCOY: No. But I believe that it's the same either way and that it should just be abolished and that it shouldn't be used in rap music, entertainment, movies, radio - I don't think it should be used.

LEMON: You used a good example of that, talking about a woman who got beat up.

MCCOY: Yes.

LEMON: Yes. Tell us about that example. MCCOY: Well, it happened in Georgia at a Cracker Barrel, and the woman had gotten beat up because she had asked a man not to open the door on her daughter and to be more careful next time. And so he got really mad and started to beat her up and he called her "N-I-G-G-A."

LEMON: Right. Instead of "E-R". So you figure it's the same thing. I want to - when you go around the churches, you don't only - you don't only give speeches but you also sing, and I want our viewers to hear you sing about - about the "N" word and then we'll talk about it. All right?

MCCOY: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MCCOY: (singing).

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So when you're up there, are you a little bit nervous? You don't seem nervous at all now.

MCCOY: Yes, I get a little bit nervous, but I just shake it off and act like I'm speaking in front of one or two people.

LEMON: Yes. The final result - what do you want? Obviously, to have the word banned, but what would you like to see? Would you like to see legislation or people to just stop using - using it?

MCCOY: I think that it should be stopped use - it should be banned from the entertainment industry and radio and music, and if they use it, if they still decide to use it, I don't think that they should get awards for them using that word in their - in their song.

LEMON: Hey, thank you so much. It's a pleasure to meet you. What a smart young man - Jonathan McCoy. Are you sure you're 11 years old?

MCCOY: Yes. I just turned 11 last week. You need a birth certificate?

LEMON: No. Yes, can I see - do you have a driver's license?

MCCOY: No, but I have - I have...

LEMON: You're not old enough to drive. All right. Thank you. Hey - and happy birthday, all right?

MCCOY: Thank you.

LEMON: All right. We appreciate it. Jonathan McCoy. If you want to find out more about Jonathan's petition against the "N" word, you can go to cnn.com/kyra or cnn.com/don and if you want to hear more about it, you can see it. Go to Twitter. Also, I think it's kyracnn or doncnn, donlemoncnn - all right? So we're going to read some of your tweets later about this. A lot of you are weighing in on it. Our thanks again to Jonathan. Very bright young man. You know, the final sprint, beginning gracefully, as First Lady Michelle Obama arrived in Copenhagen, Denmark, this morning. She and the president talking up her hometown to the International Olympic Committee, ahead of Friday's announcement on the 2016 host city. Chicago, Rio, Tokyo and Madrid - all are finalists in this. And helping the Obamas with the Olympic bid, US Gold Medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee, Michael Johnson and Nastia Liukin.

Chicago Mayor Richard Daley is in Copenhagen too, and he took a moment today to talk about the crime that is rocking his city. Mayor Daley asking people to come forward with information on more suspects in a fatal beating there. Fourteen there are already in custody, accused of last week's attack on honor student Darion Albert.

The 16-year-old's last moments caught on tape being beaten with wooden railroad ties. The sheer brutality of it all resonated all the way to Washington, D.C.

(BEGIN VIDEO TAPE)

ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: Well, this is something that the president has discussed with advisors as - as recently as this morning in a meeting in the Oval Office, and we'll have some announcements about that upcoming.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You cannot tell us anything about what's in that (ph) discussion?

GIBBS: No, I - I can tell you obviously the - the - the reports of and the video that - that we have seen on - on television is - is among the most shocking that you can ever see. The killing of an honor student by others who - who's beaten to death is - is chilling, chilling video, and I think this is something that the administration has been working on. This is not just a Chicago-specific problem, obviously. Youth crime and gang violence are something that this administration takes seriously and we'll have more on that soon.

(END VIDEO TAPE)

LEMON: All right, very interesting response from Robert Gibbs there, the Secret Service. Also involved here, Chicago Police asking them for help to enhance that video of the beating.

Minutes from now, President Obama, his top military commanders and his foreign policy advisers begin a review of the war strategy in Afghanistan. One big issue, building up troop strength to go after al Qaeda more aggressively. The meeting in the White House Situation Room is expected to go three hours.

Investigators are combing over the charred wreckage of a small plane crash near Muncie, Indiana. The pilot didn't answer radio calls before it went down in a farm field. His condition is unknown. F-16 fighter jets were scrambled, since the plane was operating erratically. They don't believe there was any kind of terrorist threat. Are alleged accomplices of terror suspect Najibullah Zazi secretly cooperating with police? A former prosecutor thinks that could be the case, or, he adds, they might have fled the country. New York's police commissioner, Ray Kelly, says, regardless of their whereabouts, he thinks his city is no longer in any danger.

Got a beef with the government? Well, you might get a file in a fusion -- get a file in a fusion center. Hmm. What does that mean? Not exactly Big Brother, more like a lot of curious cousins. We will explain that.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: I had never heard of these, and I'm sure you probably never heard of them either. It's called a government fusion center. It's where your personal information meets national security.

One of the groups involved in the Najibullah Zazi terror arrest was the fusion center in Denver. But with all that power comes potential -- the potential for abuse.

Here's personal finance editor Gerri Willis.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KEN KRAYESKE, ARRESTED BY HARTFORD POLICE OFFICERS: I dropped the bike.

GERRI WILLIS, CNN PERSONAL FINANCE EDITOR (voice-over): It was the morning of Connecticut Governor Jodi Rell's inaugural parade.

KRAYESKE: I pulled out my camera and I just shoot Governor Rell, about 23 shots.

WILLIS: Moments later, Ken Krayeske was stopped by Hartford police officers, handcuffed, arrested and jailed.

KRAYESKE: I said well what did I do? And I said you shouldn't have been making those threats.

WILLIS: Local police had been on the lookout for him after state police gave out a security bulletin with his photo on it. Officials wouldn't comment pending a civil lawsuit. But court documents reveal state police were alarmed by Krayeske's blog posts."Who's going to protest the inaugural ball with me, and no need to make nice."

KRAYESKE: Why do I have to be nice to a political figure simply because she won an election?

WILLIS: Police began digging for more information, mining public and commercial databases. They learned Krayeske had been a Green Party campaign director, had protested a gubernatorial debate and had once been convicted for civil disobedience. He had no history of violence.

Law professor Danielle Citron says police aren't supposed to gather information on citizens who aren't suspected of a crime. DANIELLE CITRON, PRIVACY EXPERT: If we're interested in someone because they're an advocate for a Green Party candidate, and we think they're suspicious because they want to get other people to protest someone's ideas but not because we think there's a true threat to their lives, I think that's just troubling.

WILLIS: Today law enforcement collects and shares more information than ever, and much of it goes on at state intelligence centers, called fusion centers.

(on camera): Fusion centers were started after 9/11 to help federal, state and local law enforcement connect the dots and stop a terrorist attack. The Department of Homeland Security says they are a critical tool in keeping the nation safe.

JANET NAPOLITANO, HOMELAND SECURITY SECRETARY: In a typical fusion center, an FBI agent might be sitting next to a state highway patrol officer. They don't merely share space. They share databases and techniques.

WILLIS (voice-over): But what's going into the databases have critics worried. The ACLU there's evidence that some fusion centers have targeted Muslim groups and peace activists for surveillance.

RICH KELLY, DIRECTOR, REGIONAL OPERATIONS INTELLIGENCE CENTER: They're collecting information about people that has no relevance as to whether or not they're breaking the law.

We're at the center of the analysis zone...

WILLIS: The director of New Jersey's fusion center says law enforcement works hard to balance national security with individual privacy.

KELLY: We in law enforcement and certainly in fusion centers, are very attuned to the bill of rights. We are not in the business of investigating first amendment or constitutionally protected rights.

WILLIS: But Ken Krayeske thinks police in his town crossed the line.

KRAYESKE: The police did not determine the difference between who was dangerous, and who was merely expressing constitutional -- their constitutionally protected viewpoints.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: That was personal finance editor here at CNN Gerri Willis reporting.

A house fire -- a house on fire, common call to a 911 dispatcher, right? But this blaze was anything but common for one dispatcher. Let's just say the address sounded really familiar, way too familiar.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: OK. So, Mike Bowes is used to hearing other people's problems. For more than a decade, he's been a 911 dispatcher in Quincy, Massachusetts, just outside of Boston, and he's probably heard it all -- or thought he had, until Monday night.

That's when he took a call from this explosion and fire at an address that sounded familiar to his own, very familiar, way too familiar. It was his own house. Well, he transferred the call to the fire department, just as he would for any fire, but then he responded in person to see his home of 20 years engulfed.

Bowes' elderly parents live with him and also called 911. Both got out OK. We're glad for that.

OK. Killing the N-word, it might take a silver bullet, plus a wooden stake, but one very sharp and mature 11-year-old is doing his best to bury it. Is the word acceptable in any context? What do you think?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right, so earlier this hour, just a short time ago, we introduced you to 11-year-old Jonathan McCoy. He's trying to get people to stop using the N-word.

Now, some of you wrote in. Here's some from Kyra's -- this is on Kyra's blog, right?

It says -- thepowerofone98 tweets, writes: "His parents are failing him by allowing him to believe the N-word has power over him. This gives it life. And power comes from within."

Someone else, sonofslaves, writes: "I think the N-word is a very filthy word, and neither me nor my kids use it. Sadly, it is popularized in today's rap hip-hop cult."

And a lot of you are tweeting DonLemonCNN, as well. Let's read some of you. You guys really like this kid.

ShimmerDiamond says: "Maybe we're just so used to hearing it sometimes. That little boy spoke words of wisdom. Makes me think twice myself."

BrownLovelyLady says: "He is right. It truly bothers me to hear my own people calling each other by such a degrading word. This is what MLK died for."

And then one person says: "Banning the N-word and others does nothing as long as the sentiment remains."

That's it for me. I'm pretty sure Kyra's back here tomorrow. I'm Don Lemon.

Thanks for joining us.

The next hour of the CNN NEWSROOM with Mr. Rick Sanchez starts right now.