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American Morning
GOP Wins Key Governor Races; President's Half-Brother
Aired November 04, 2009 - 08:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning once again, and welcome to AMERICAN MORNING. It's Wednesday, November 4th, coming up on 8:00 here in New York. I'm Kiran Chetry.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. I'm John Roberts. Thanks for joining us on the Most News in the Morning.
And here are the big stories we'll be telling you about in the next 15 minutes. The Republican Party has got a heart beat again. Crucial governor's races in Virginia and New Jersey both going to the GOP last night, a sobering blow to President Obama and the Democratic Party. We'll break down the results and take a closer look at the shifting of America's political landscape.
CHETRY: Well, the president's half brother has emerged in China, breaking his silence about his abusive father, a man who left President Obama when he was just two years old. How the elections turned years of despair into hope for one long-lost Obama relative.
ROBERTS: Plus, Defense Secretary Robert Gates has been tight- lipped about troop levels in Afghanistan while he awaits the president's decision, but even though he's keeping his cards close to his chest he's showing raw emotion when talking about visiting the remains of soldiers who lost their lives in the war.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT GATES, U.S. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I went to the back of the plane by myself and spent time with each of the transfer cases. I think I'll stop there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: Ahead in our special series, "The Presidential Brain Trust," we'll take a look at the relationship between the top man at the Pentagon and the commander-in-chief.
Don't shovel dirt on the Republican Party just yet. Crucial races for governor in New Jersey and Virginia going to the GOP last night.
Here's how it went down in Virginia. Republican Bob McDonnell staging a sweeping 18-point landslide win over Democrat Creigh Deeds. And in New Jersey, Chris Christie with a four-point victory over Democratic incumbent governor, Jon Corzine. New Jersey has not been run by a Republican, well -- at least -- let's make that clear, a Republican has not been elected in New Jersey in 12 years. A special election in Upstate New York giving Democrats something to celebrate. Bill Owens capturing the House seat from the 23rd district, defeating conservative Doug Hoffman. It's a seat held by Republicans since Ulysses S. Grant was president.
Candy Crowley joins us now.
And what's that all about? Are these just state elections or is there broader meaning here?
CANDY CROWLEY, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
(LAUGHTER)
CROWLEY: Yes on both. I mean, it is a combination. There were state issues.
Jon Corzine was a very unpopular figure. In Virginia, there have been Democrats for the last eight years in the governor's office. And that tends to be a state that really has trended historically conservative. It's not all that unusual that it would choose a Republican after eight years.
So, what we have here is a mix. But all things considered, politics is about winning, so you have to mostly give last night to the Republicans.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(CHEERING)
CROWLEY (voice-over): As it turns out, the Republican Party is not dead.
GOVERNOR-ELECT BOB MCDONNELL (R), VIRGINIA: Tonight, you've given me the title of governor of Virginia. But I pledge to you over the next four years action and results.
CROWLEY: With a big assist from independents, Republicans swept Virginia's three statewide races and knocked out an incumbent governor in New Jersey.
GOVERNOR-ELECT CHRISTOPHER CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: Starting tomorrow, we are going to pick Trenton up and we're going to turn it upside down.
(CHEERING)
CROWLEY: White House aides said the president wasn't going to watch election returns. He probably slept better for that because he was no bystander in these high profile Democratic defeats. He took one swing through Virginia, a state he won by six points and made three trips to New Jersey, a state he won by more than 15.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We will not lose this election if all of you are as committed as you were last year. CROWLEY: As it turns out, neither mojo nor voters are transferable.
The brightest spot for Democrats was a Republican-made disaster in a special election for U.S. Congress in Upstate New York. A Democrat won that seat that's been held by Republicans for more than a century after a nasty struggle between a moderate Republican and a conservative paved the way. Note to the GOP: Fighting can be fatal.
But this all adds up to depends on who does the math. The White House began to subtract itself before the polls closed.
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: We don't look at either of these gubernatorial races or the congressional race as something that portends a lot for our legislative efforts going forward or political prospects in 2010.
CROWLEY: And history offers some shelter for the new administration. The party in the White House has lost both governor races in Virginia and New Jersey since 1989.
Still, the exit polls show voters top concern was the economy. The National Republican Senatorial Committee called the results a vote for reining in government spending and restoring fiscal responsibility.
In the end, the politics of the night are not all that complicated. The victors get bragging rights and energy. It's better to win. The Grand Old Party had a great old night, mostly.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CROWLEY: They will need to ride this one as long as they because while this may have some implications for what the political atmosphere is about right this second. It is a longtime between now and 2010, if the economy starts to boom and there's a very good health care reform bill that the president signs, well, suspect you would see some different outcomes at the polls.
So, we know a little something about where the electorate is right now, which is different than when they were a year ago. But we don't know much about where they're going to be a year from now.
ROBERTS: And we should point out too that Virginia and New Jersey have been following recent trends, where the party that doesn't hold power in the White House wins the gubernatorial off-year election the following year.
CROWLEY: Exactly. There is history on the side. There is a pattern of history here that the White House can point to.
On the other hand, if you send the president of the United States out three times in New Jersey to say, "Hey, come on out like you did for me," and they don't...
CHETRY: Right. CROWLEY: ... well, there's a certain message there. Even if it's only that you can't transfer that kind of mojo, that you -- you know, they got to earn it themselves.
CHETRY: It's also, you know, as the president's personal popularity remains high, the two big issues that tripping up the administration, Afghanistan and the economy. 2010 is a lot closer when you look at those issues because nothing is getting solved in Afghanistan in the next months.
CROWLEY: It is. And I think, p more troublesome than these polls, voter polls, to the White House is that we also have those polls that show -- yes, the president's approval rating remains at -- I think our recent poll showed 54 percent for how he's handling his job. But when you look at the major issues, it's below 50 percent for approval.
So, again, a man more popular than his policies, and after a while, one of them has to win.
ROBERTS: Candy Crowley for us this morning -- stick around, we're going to have you on a panel with Bob Zimmerman and Ed Rollins coming right up.
CROWLEY: I will.
CHETRY: Thanks, Candy.
ROBERTS: So, looking forward of having you back.
CHETRY: Another thing that's clear in the wake of last night's Republican resurgence is that President Obama and his coattails have lost a little bit of clout as Candy was referring to, but Ed Henry is live at the White House.
Ed, you know, the White House last night, it was funny that they sent out an e-mail saying that they weren't even sticking around to watch the polling results, right? Some of them were headed to the gym. They had other things to do.
But how big of a seatback is this for the president? Is too much being made of these state governor elections?
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, good morning, Kiran. You're right. I mean, as Candy pointed out, you can't make too much out of just a few races, but there are certainly warning signs out there for the president. If the mood of the electorate is very anxious about the economy, the kind of change that he was elected on just one year ago this week could be turned against him next year in the midterm election.
But there's a lot more that still needs to play out. As you mentioned, last night, as I was headed out, I ran into David Axelrod, the president's senior adviser, said the president is not going to be watching these results. He's more likely to watch the Chicago Bulls and Milwaukee Bucks basketball game. And that's all about trying to downplay things.
But the fact is, as Candy pointed out, this president put his political muscle out there. He was in New Jersey just on Sunday, pushing for Jon Corzine. In the end, that didn't work out.
And when I sat down with Vice President Biden on Friday, he was saying how he was a bit little tired from traveling so much because he's done 52 political events for Democratic candidates running in 2009 as well as 2010.
So, I think we're going to hear a lot today from the White House downplaying expectations, downplaying what this means. But the fact is, from the president to the vice president, many other officials, they've been working hard on these elections and it's a disappointment -- Kiran.
CHETRY: Yes. And so, what is the president going to do between now and November 2010 to avoid more casualties, I guess you could say in the Democratic Party?
HENRY: It's the economy, stupid. We heard that in 1992, all over again here.
If you look at the exit polling, putting aside the candidate names, one thing voters agree on in many of these races is that they are very, very concerned and anxious about the state of the American economy. President has been talking a lot about it in the first nine months but he also has this big health care battle going on right now. The sooner he can get back to sort of a full time focus on the economy, probably will help his party.
I think the bigger headline that we may need to pay attention to than these individual races in terms of what happened yesterday is the Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid saying, maybe we won't get health care done in 2009, it might have to get pushed to January of 2010. Now, his office has since clarified said he's still confident he can get it done this year.
But that's a bigger warning sign for this president. If health care gets held over into 2010 and is still crowding out the rest of the agenda and people are still worried about the economy, that could be a problem if he doesn't get a win on that very soon -- Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. Ed Henry for us this morning -- great to have you with us. Thanks.
HENRY: Thanks, Kiran.
ROBERT: Earlier on AMERICAN MORNING, both national committee chairs joined us for post-election reaction. We also asked them how much the president factored in and what this could mean for lawmakers who face judgment day next year.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL STEELE, RNC CHAIRMAN: I'm not so quick to say -- oh, yes, this portends great things for the GOP next year. We still have a lot of work to do. We have a party that, again, is reconnecting with the American people. We're trying to lay out alternative perspectives and views on a host of issues that are impacting small businesses and families.
And as we make those arguments I think we'll be in a better position to appreciate the move that we've made off of last night going into 2010.
GOV. TIM KAINE, DNC CHAIRMAN: I think you just need to read these as local races, with local concerns. That's traditionally been the way these two races have gone in the years after the presidential race. But the president is quite popular in both New Jersey and Virginia.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERTS: And coming up at 8:20 Eastern, we're going to talk with our political panel about the Republican revival and what it means going forward. Ed Rollins, Bob Zimmerman and Candy Crowley will join us -- Kiran.
CHETRY: I'm looking forward to that.
You know, we want to check in some of the other big races that took place. We're going to start with Atlanta's mayor race. And this was a very interesting match-up here between Mary Norwood and Kasim Reed. It got down to both of them.
No one got enough of the vote to avoid a runoff. Mary Norwood did not get enough to win outright. So, what's going to happen is that if she wins the runoff, which is slated for the first week of December, she would actually be the first Caucasian elected to mayor in Atlanta since the 1980s.
Also -- all right, let's get rid of this race and take a look at the Houston's mayor's race. A lot of people were watching this one closely as well because Annise Parker, if she had won -- and again, this is going to a runoff -- would be the first openly gay female in any city in America if she won. But again, this one going to a runoff, neither candidate is getting enough of a vote to avoid that.
And we're going to take a look a couple of initiatives, one that a lot of people are watching was Maine. This was a same-sex marriage law repeal initiative. And what happened here is gay activists were hoping that the state would become the first to approve gay marriage at the polls, instead, nearly 53 percent of voters opted to throw out the same-sex marriage law that was passed by the state legislature back in May. Forty-seven percent voted to uphold it.
And this was a story we brought you yesterday that was pretty interesting as well -- a little measure going on in Denver, Colorado. This was an initiative that would have mandated and required police to seize cars from people caught driving without a license. It would have made that mandatory for police not only to impound the vehicles of these drivers who couldn't prove they had a license, but also would cost about $2,700 to get it back.
Well, opponents did not like this at all because they say it targeted illegal immigrants, the vote also is coming just a day after a state audit showed that about a quarter of deadly crashes involved unlicensed drivers last year.
City voters, though, not swayed. This went down in defeat again in Denver.
So, if you head off to work this morning and you want to check out some of these races, and all of the election results from your desk here about the winners, head to CNNPolitics.com -- John.
ROBERTS: It's 11 1/2 minutes after the hour.
Coming up: President Obama's half brother breaks his silence on abuse at the hands of their mutual father. We'll hear what he has to say about it -- coming right up.
Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: A developing story now out of Iran, where there are reports of clashes in the streets between anti-government protesters and police.
Thirty years ago today, Islamic students stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran and held 53 Americans hostage for 444 days. The event is celebrated as a national holiday in Iran with anti-American rallies planned by the government today. Protesters were warned to keep away but thousands of demonstrators ignored those warnings. We'll bring updates just as soon as they become available.
CHETRY: President Obama hardly knew his father. But his half brother grew up with him, and he's a man he says he came to fear. Mark Obama Ndesandjo introduced himself to the world yesterday. And like his famous half-brother, he's now also an author.
Our John Vause is live for us all the way from Shanghai this morning. What did the president's half brother say about his childhood?
JOHN VAUSE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kiran, we learned in fact that Mark Obama Ndesandjo is, in fact, Jewish, which is one very big difference to the president. They had a different mother, Mark's mother was Ruth.
But there are similarities as well. He looks a bit like the president. They have similar mannerisms as well, and he also says they share one other thing and that is an abusive dad.
(voice-over): He's an Obama you probably never heard of. Mark Obama Ndesandjo, the President's half brother. An engineer by trade he lost his job in the U.S. seven years ago. And moved to the booming city of Shenzhen in china south where he owns a small chain of restaurants, and a scene in this YouTube clip teaches orphans.
MARK OBAMA, BARACK OBAMA'S HALF-BROTHER: In my own way I have tried to make a difference.
VAUSE: After dodging the media for almost a year he is speaking out now. For one, he's written a book, a semi-autobiographical story, called From Nairobi to Shenzhen. And it that book, he reveals that Barack Obama sr. the father that he shares with the President of the United States was often drunk and physically abusive.
OBAMA: My father beat me, he beat my mother, and you just do not do that. I shut these thoughts in the back of my mind for many years.
VAUSE: For years he struggled with that name Obama. Few here ever knew about his famous family connection but then something happened. A year ago as thousands gathered in Grant Park to celebrate his brother's victory his own despair, he says became hope.
OBAMA: I saw the millions of people who loved or supported my brother Barack. And in the process, in some weird way, I came to terms with many things that I had shut out of my life including the Obama name.
VAUSE (on camera): And over the years Mark Obama says he only met a few times with his brother but plans to catch up and introduce his new Chinese wife when President Obama makes his first official visit to china later this month. Being a presidential brother is not easy. Think Billy Carter and Roger Clinton. Mark Obama says now he wants to live his life and tell his own story, not have it told by others. Now, President Obama is only mentioned once in the book in the forward Mark Obama Ndesandjo thanks a few people. And among those names is quite simply Barack, Kiran.
CHETRY: And the White House is weighing in about this book?
VAUSE: Yes nothing from the White House yet. But I asked Mark Obama Ndesandjo specifically about that. He said they have been in touch, they are aware of the book but he wouldn't really go into detail. He is a personal, very private individual, Kiran.
CHETRY: All right. But yet he has a book out. John Vause in Shanghai this morning for us thanks.
ROBERTS: So was there an appetite for change that was displayed during the off-year elections yesterday? We'll kick that around with our political panel Ed Rollins, Robert Zimmerman, and Candy Crowley straight ahead. Stay with us at 18 minutes after the hour
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Hey, there's a new photograph for us this morning. That's actually a video; it's not a photograph, of Washington, the Washington monument there. Partly cloudy, 44 degrees now Later on today mostly cloudy with a high of 55, but as you can see, wow, it's just looks beautiful there now. Enjoy it while you got it because the clouds are moving in later today. This is the best part of the day.
This morning the grand old party is celebrating two major election victories, Republicans ousting Democratic governors in Virginia and New Jersey. President Obama campaigned for the incumbents to no avail. So could this Republican revival be a preview of the 2010 midterm elections. We've got three of the sharpest political minds on the planet here to talk about it, Republican Strategist and CNN Political Analyst Ed Rollins, Democratic Strategist and CNN Political Contributor Robert Zimmerman, and of course, our Senior Political Correspondent Candy Crowley. Bob, let me start with you. How you feeling this morning?
ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST AND CNN POLITICAL CONTRIBUTOR: Well I'm glad I got a chair for this segment. I can tell you that. There is no question this was an important night for the Republican party, and it wasn't just their victories in Virginia and in New Jersey. It was also victories in Republican suburbs, they brought back in New York State, but I think the real message behind last night is that when Republicans campaign on jobs and the economy and grab the center, they are successful. And they were successful in those states. You look at the 23rd congressional district of New York, a state that formerly, the last time it was non Republican and vote forward a wig, you know, remember the wig party. Is when they run on the values issues and run with the extreme right, they lose.
ROBERTS: So what was this all about, Candy? Was it about the economy, was about it health care? Was it about mistrust? Was it about change? What was it about?
CROWLEY: Was it about corruption in New Jersey? It was about all of those things. So, you have to take this...
ROBERTS: So, local and national.
CROWLEY: It really was. I n perspective it means something about the here and now. It shows you that it is not enough to be with the same party with President Obama as popular as he remains, that is not enough to win an election. So we know that. We also know that there is still great trepidation out there about the economy. We saw that in the exit polls. On the other hand, we don't know much about 2010. So much could change between now and then.
ROBERTS: Yes we'll talk about that in just a moment. But do You think this was repudiation of President Obama's policies in Virginia and New Jersey? They did follow historic trends.
ED ROLLINS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST AND CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: It was like - it was like the weather, partly cloudy. You know, and I think I was in the White House that's what I would feel today. I'm glad the President was watching the Bull's game instead of -- what this proved a year ago, Republicans weren't sure they could ever get back off the mat. I think what they proved as I've known over four decades, candidates matter; good campaigns matter and the voters are pretty darn smart. We ran better campaigns in both of these states. Corzine in particular was a - was a repudiation of him and the closing days of the campaign when the President is standing there saying I need this guy, vote for him, I need him in Washington. Well you can have him in Washington now; you can go down there full time. The people in New Jersey basically made up their mind that they wanted something else.
ROBERTS: Ed has a genteel way of putting things doesn't he?
ROLLINS: He's available (INAUDIBLE). The only thing that I think the president suffered from is that there was overconfidence. I think even the comment of I'm not going to watch it tonight, I think the Democrats thought that they could make this happen because of their popularity. They didn't transfer that campaign machine into local elections and it's hard to do. Real factor, though, is independents came out and they voted Republican this time. Whichever side they swing to in the last 2006, 2008 and this one, it makes a difference. So those independent voters are very key and not for sale, they may be for rent each election cycle but you better talk to issues that matter.
ROBERTS: Well certainly Robert Zimmerman, there are some Democrats who are standing taking notice of this and what it portends for the future. D triple C Chairman Chris Van Haul and said all incumbents need to be on red alert here.
ZIMMERMAN: Well I think it's an important message for 2010. Not that this election is an historic indicator because traditionally it's not. But what is important to note is that if you look at the fact that young people, African -- Americans, who were so critical as well as independents for Obama's victory in 2008, did not show up in any particular number. Yes, in fact, young people did vote for Governor Corzine but the number of turnout was reduced by half. So, the message for incumbents is they -- incumbent Democrats is they have to take - they have to mobilize that Obama coalition and bring it back in 201.
ROBERTS: Well let's talk about the independents that Ed mentioned just a moment ago in New Jersey they went 60-30 for -- against Corzine in Virginia. They went 66-33 for Bob McDonnell, President Obama had split them pretty much evenly 49 - 48 with John McCain in the 2008 election. Candy, why the swing?
CROWLEY: Well one of the things we have to remember is that some of those independents are former Republicans because the Republican Party membership has gone down so they went somewhere. And mostly they did not go Democratic; they went into the independent category. So there is that. And they are notorious swing voters.
In an election you have people who come out for the Republicans, people who come out for the Democrats and people who come out and vote for who has grabbed their attention this time and that is independents. I mean you know, historically, elections are always about the independents unless it's a terribly Republican district or terribly Democratic district. So they hold the key, they have always hold -- held the key. And I think that's where the President needs to spend a lot of his time because it's also where we're seeing slippage when we ask people if they approve of the President on a variety of issues, the slippage is among independents.
ROLLINS: There's also intensity among the Republicans. Republicans are outside the system today, they're angry, they don't like what's going on in Washington, they -- and -
ROBERTS: And intensity is a big part.
ROLLINS: Intensity is a big part.
ZIMMERMAN: And you saw that with the low turnout among Democrats, so I think what's really going to be critical going forward in 2010 is to make sure that there is ability to mobilize that Democratic vote and mobilize independents who lean track Democratic. There's a big stake home vote.
ROBERTS: It may be difficult to sort of read anything into what's going to happen next year in terms of the results of this election. But the in fighting in New York's 23rd what does that say about Republicans' ability to field a moderate candidate or was Peter Scozzafava just too moderate. I'm thinking about what we might see in Florida next year with Governor Crist going up against Mark Arubia.
ROLLINS: Republican conservatives vote in primary, conservatives are majority of our party across this country and any portion of it. Where there are primaries usually the best candidate comes out of that. You didn't have a primary. You kind of have the party bosses choosing, a lot of animosity. I don't think you can take 23 and make some assumption.
ZIMMERMAN: And with all due respect and I admire you...
ROLLINS: No, no, Bob when you take the Republican and conservative, your guy got 49 percent of the vote, and he won't be there in 2010.
ZIMMERMAN: And if you look at the field operation, in the 23rd Congressional District of New York you have Republican committee people going door to door with Democrats on behalf of the Democratic candidate. The message simply being that when they take a candidate like Hoffman who didn't live in the district and bring in Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh and all these other characters outside of the district - outside of the state, it produce as backlash.
CROWLEY: But the politics of this is -- it is very much in the Democrats' interest to talk about oh, the crazies are in charge. Because of that drives the moderates away. So let's be really clear about that -- having said that there's obviously is a larger struggle, leave 23 aside in New York, there's a larger struggle inside the Republican party about moderates versus the more purist conservatives. I don't think it's going to play out nationally so much as in these individual races, and it is true that there wasn't a primary here and there is a primary in the Chris Arubia race.
ZIMMERMAN: And the great news is we get 435 individual races to do next year.
ROBERTS: Great to see you folks thanks for coming in, Kiran.
CHETRY: Well right now in an economic downturn it's hard for people at times to keep spirits up. Well we're going to be joined by Joel Osteen, a pastor of the largest and fastest growing church in America. He has a book calling it "It's Your Time." he's going to explain how to keep our hopes up in this tough environment, 28 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: It's 30 minutes right on the nose here. We check our top stories this morning.
Gold prices at a record high this morning after India bought close to $7 billion of the precious metal from the international Monetary Fund. The rally came despite a slightly stronger U.S. dollar.
Gold and other commodities that are priced in dollars usually go down when the buck goes up.
ROBERTS: The Louisiana justice of the peace who refused to marry white woman and black man has resigned from his position. Keith Bardwell told CNN affiliate WBRZ that he would probably do the same thing again. The couple got married somewhere else and have filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Bardwell and his wife.
CHETRY: And he made headline when he resigned in protest of the Afghan war. Matthew Hoh, both a former State Department employee and former marine, in his resignation letter, he said that American soldiers are dying in another country civil war. Earlier on "AMERICAN MORNING" I asked him what's been the reaction to his sentiments.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MATTHEW HOH, RESIGNED STATE DEPARTMENT JOB IN PROTEST OF AFGHAN WAR: I've received a lot of support from the general public, most importantly I received support from Afghan-Americans who are saying Matt, you get it. This is a civil war. You understand societal structures, you understand this concept of valleyism (ph).
And equally important, I've gotten a lot of support from active- duty military. Some of them are friends but a lot are men and women I don't know, and a lot of them are in Afghanistan saying Matt, keep this up. We're not sure what we're doing here. We're not sure why we're here. This doesn't make sense.
What we're doing is not going to defeat al Qaeda, it's not going to stabilize Pakistan, and we're being committed to a war that really doesn't make sense to us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Hoh also says that sending more troops to Afghanistan would only fuel the insurgency.
We're following a developing story this morning of a crime scene discovered two days before Halloween in Ohio is now sounding more and more like a horror movie.
Police say they found four more bodies at the home of a suspected serial killer and rapist. It brings the total number of victims found now to 10.
Investigators are back at the house tearing down walls this morning. Our Susan Candiotti has the very latest from Cleveland.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT: As if the scene weren't gruesome enough, it appears at least one victim was decapitated.
CHIEF MICHAEL MCGRATH, CLEVELAND POLICE: The skull was discovered wrapped in a paper bag in a bucket in the basement.
CANDIOTTI: And in the backyard, investigators dug up the remains of four more people, bringing the total now to ten. Six of them are described as African-American women, and at least five of them appear to have been strangled. They were all found in and around the house of convicted rapist, 50-year-old Anthony Sowell.
MCGRATH: It appears this is man had an insatiable appetite that he had to fill.
CANDIOTTI: Police went to the house last week to arrest Sowell on new rape charges. He wasn't there, but they found the first bodies.
A week earlier neighbors reported seeing a naked woman fall from the second floor, but no charges were filed. The sheriff also made at least one surprise visit to check up on Sowell, who is a registered sex offender.
By law police aren't allowed to go in the house, but neighbors said you didn't have to go inside to know something was wrong.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You could smell it. You could smell the damn bodies. You going to tell me people in the neighborhood didn't smell that?
CANDIOTTI: Some thought the smell came from Ray's Sausage, which sits right next to Sowell's house. It got so bad the owner of Ray's replaced a sewer line and grease traps, thinking they were the source of the odor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We used to think it was coming from out of Ray's Sausage. But you smell these smells, and I live right there, and I would be in the house, and we'd come out and like oh, the smell was horrible.
MAYOR FRANK JACKSON, CLEVELAND: And I can imagine how the families feel who have reported a missing person and anxiety that they are going through. And we want to assure them as soon as we know something, they will be the first to know.
CANDIOTTI: Susan Candiotti, CNN, Cleveland, Ohio.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: And coming up now on 34 minutes after the hour. Continuing our special series this week, "The President's Brain Trust," today we look at Defense Secretary Robert Gates who has served both Republican and Democratic presidents.
What's the relationship between the two men like? Stay tuned. We'll have that for you.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: It's 37 minutes past the hour.
A bipartisan cabinet, it was one of President Obama's campaign promises. And he kept his word when he announced President Bush's defense chief Robert Gates would be staying on the job at the Pentagon.
ROBERTS: Barbara Starr has a look at his relationship with the commander in chief. She is live at the Pentagon with part three of our special series, "The Presidential Brain Trust."
Good morning, Barbara.
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, John and Kiran.
Bob Gates has served under eight U.S. presidents. He talks a lot about retiring, but he is still here at the Pentagon and at the center of the president's inner circle.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERT GATES, SECRETARY OF DEFENSE: I'm deeply honored that the president-elect has asked me to continue as Secretary of Defense.
STARR: At the beginning, they were a political odd couple.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I, Barack Hussein Obama...
STARR: A new Democratic president who campaigned against Washington business as usual, keeping a veteran insider who had been serving under Republican President Bush, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, now one of President Obama's closest advisers.
He has given credibility to a president who lacked national security credentials. Gates commands the power to tell others to button it when it comes to the classified review of Afghanistan.
GATES: It is imperative that all of us taking part in these deliberations, civilians and military alike, provide our best advice to the president candidly but privately.
STARR: It's vintage Gates. The former CIA chief puts a premium on loyalty and discretion. The White House has noticed.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he is exactly at the center. He has been I think a big surprise to Obama. They thought it was a politically astute move to keep him on. I think they were surprised at the bond that developed between Obama and Gates, the respect that Gates quickly won from Obama.
STARR (on camera): One of the places Bob Gates has been the most effective is here on Capitol Hill where his straight shooter reputation has helped him convince Congress to go along with everything from cutting expensive weapons programs to giving the president enough time to decide on war strategy.
STARR (voice-over): One plus for Gates, he's not running for office or his next job.
GLORIA BORGER, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL ANALYST: When you take the political calculation out of it, more people are willing to give him the benefit of the doubt and say he's staying on because he wants to do the right thing.
STARR: The ultimate test of Bob Gates' influence will come on the issue of Afghanistan. He has been silent on his advice to the president, but he's made it known his opposition to sending more troops has eased.
One vulnerability Gates seems unable to mask, his emotions about the troops. After seeing remains return to Dover Air Force base, he found it hard to talk.
GATES: I went to the back of the plane by myself and spent time with each of the transfer cases. I think I'll stop there.
STARR: But how long will Gates now stay on the job?
GATES: There is an old saying about the one-year mark in Washington. For the first six months you wonder how the hell you got here. For the next six months you wonder how the hell the rest of them got here.
(LAUGHTER)
And I might add that after nearly three years you start wondering how the hell you're still here.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
STARR: So, what does Bob Gates do to get away from it all here at the Pentagon? Well, aides say that the secretary likes to watch escapist thriller movies, that he says he has enough reality in his day job.
But the reality for bob gates right now is, if the war in Afghanistan continues to go badly, how much of the blame will he have to shoulder -- John, Kiran.
ROBERTS: Any idea, Barbara, how long Gates plans to stay on?
STARR: Well, that is always the question, because, you know, even at the end of the Bush administration he was talking a lot about going back to his home in Washington State.
Some people say start watching next year in 2010. Once he begins to put the strategy in place for Afghanistan, that lure of retirement once again may be the call that he heeds -- John.
ROBERTS: Barbara Starr for us live at the Pentagon this morning.
Tomorrow, by the way, in our special series "The Presidential Brain Trust," she's a long time friend of the first family who probably knows them better than anyone in the White House inner circle. The CNN Washington team has an in-depth look at senior adviser Valerie Jarrett.
CHETRY: And still ahead we're going to be speaking with Pastor Joel Osteen. He has a new book out that may be timely as many struggle with unemployment, foreclosure, and a bleak economic picture. He tells you not to give up. So we're going to ask him what we should do.
It's 42 minutes after the hour.
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ROBERTS: Good morning Dallas, where it's sunny and 52 degrees right now. It's going to be a great day, sunny with a high of 77 degrees, fantastic. Not a cloud in the sky there. What's the weather like across the rest of the country?
Rob Marciano is tracking any extreme weather that might happen to be blowing your way. He's in Atlanta. Hey, Rob.
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning guys.
Yes, we've had a rough go as far as finding extreme weather this week which is good. We'll talk more about the U.S. forecast in just a sec.
But first off, this little blurb here in the southwestern Caribbean is getting more intense it looks like, especially the last couple of frames, you see that flare up of thunderstorms.
It is still hurricane season, my friends. And this is kind of forecast to drift in this general direction toward the Gulf of Mexico and that could still be a concern. So National Hurricane Center is going to send that recon aircraft in there this morning and get out there this afternoon and take a look at it. It could be our next tropical storm or at least tropical depression. And again we're in hurricane season until November 30th.
A little storm here, rolling across the Great Lakes, just a couple of showers from Chicago to Detroit. They'll be rolling towards New York as well. But I think tonight for game six of the World Series, conditions should be perfect. Crisp and cool and dry, temperatures right around 52. No rain.
It probably will rain tomorrow night but then again there's not going to be a game sadly so that shouldn't be too much of an issue.
I want to briefly speak about one thing. We did have a little earthquake out here off the Oregon coastline just about an hour ago; 5.3 magnitude, not enough to cause a tsunami but certainly enough to maybe rattle some folks who live out maybe near Coos Bay (ph) or (INAUDIBLE) but Portland folks did not see it.
Speaking of boom, yes, that will be some dynamites. This is I-40 between Knoxville and Nashville. Remember, there was a rock slide a couple of weeks ago guys which shutdown Interstate 40. Well they had to take some dynamite to it yesterday and loosen up some of those more dangerous rocks. Still going to take several of weeks if not a couple of months to clear these thing up.
And -- you know every little boy likes to see some dynamite, a little explosion, some dust. Kind of as a guttural instinct little thing I guess -- that and fire --- nobody got hurt and they're on their way to clearing that road -- John and Kiran back up to you.
CHETRY: Nobody got hurt and a good time was had by all.
MARCIANO: Yes, that's right.
ROBERTS: Remember one of the most popular videos was in a big construction equipment because little boys love to watch road graders, bulldozers, backhoes, things like that so Rob just going on to prove the theory there.
CHETRY: Thank you so much.
MARCIANO: That's right.
CHETRY: He still watches "Bob the Builder"; it's his favorite show in TiVo every night.
MARCIANO: Nothing wrong with buying a kid a Tonka truck for Christmas. There you go.
CHETRY: You're so manly. And it will be a game seven. Ok, bye, Rob. Goodbye.
Well, it's Steve, it's Alec and it's Oscar. Hollywood titans Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin are going to be co-hosting the 82nd Annual Academy Awards. Martin telling "The New York Times" about it, "I am happy to co-host the Oscars with my enemy Alec Baldwin.
The two are actually co-starring together in the upcoming comedy "It's Complicated." And the Oscars will air March 7th on ABC.
There you go.
And still ahead we're going to be speaking with Joel Osteen, he's a pastor, he's an author. And he's going to offer a little bit of hope and advice in tough economic times.
Forty-eight minutes passed the hour.
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CHETRY: Fifty minutes past the hour.
The economic recession has affected us all in big and small ways. And a lot of Americans are feeling the need to perhaps put their dreams on hold until the economy improves. Perhaps maybe rethinking their dreams altogether.
Joel Osteen is the pastor of America's largest and one of the fastest growing churches. He says that this is actually the best time in your life to thrive. It's the central message of his new book, "It's Your Time: Activate your Faith, Achieve your Dreams and Increase in God's Favor."
And Joel Osteen, great to have you with us.
JOEL OSTEEN, AUTHOR, "IT'S YOUR TIME": Thanks, always good to be with you.
CHETRY: Once again. So, for people that are really feeling down right now and there's a lot of people out there who are wondering whether they'll ever get back to even perhaps where they were before, maybe their home was foreclosed on. Maybe they've lost their job and they're wondering am I ever going to feel financial security and even spirituality again.
What's your message to them?
OSTEEN: You know my message is that the seasons come and the seasons go, that if you stay in faith, if you don't allow yourself to get bitter and negative and become just overly discouraged I believe God will open up new doors and they will come in to brighter seasons.
CHETRY: You talk about being in favor many times in the book. And I'm just wondering if you can explain it a little more, does it mean that no matter how religious you are or who much you believe that God sort of favors some people over others?
OSTEEN: Well, I believe that in life we all have difficulties. I mean, the scriptures, you know, full of that. But it says to be of good cheer. And so I believe that when you have an attitude of faith, when you're expecting God's goodness, I mean, really God's favor is just his face shining down on his children.
Well, we're all his children but I believe what activates God's goodness in his favor is when you expect, when you get up in the morning and say, "God, I believe you're going to give me a good day. And even though I'm in difficulties, even though things not going right I believe you're still in control of my life."
And much of it is about trust and believing that, you know, that difficulties can lead to something better. CHETRY: So just like people are attracted to positive people, is God more attracted to you in terms of helping you out if you're not negative?
OSTEEN: Well, I believe that God is moved by our faith and, you know, God is not necessarily moved by our needs or there weren't be needy people. But when you get up in the morning like I said and you believe that God's in control of your life, that you're doing your best to honor him, live a life of excellence, I believe that your faith is what allows God to do great things.
Now, I would say this. Just because you have faith and need something, negative is not going to happen but I think that what it comes into the trust part. To say you know what, you know what, I may have gotten laid off but I know God is going to open up another door, somehow, some way.
CHETRY: You also talk about really not just believing but actually putting that into action. How do you motivate yourself when you are in those types of situations when you're looking ahead to the holidays and saying maybe I can't afford to even get my family the types of presents that perhaps they want or maybe I don't even have the money to live my life?
How do you stay activated and do -- actually do things when's all you want to do is just pull the covers back over your head?
OSTEEN: Yes, I think it's important, again, to get up in the morning and find something to be grateful for. You got to start the day off in faith because I found when you get up, then first thing comes to your mind are all your problems and what you don't want to do and how you're not going to make it.
So I think if you start the day off saying you know what, God everything is not perfect, I may not have the perfect Christmas gifts for my kids but I do have my health, I do have good kids so I'm just going to, I'm going to start that day off in faith.
And the other thing, the scripture talks about being content where you are; again, finding the good in every situation and our frame of mind, you know, draws in. I say our thoughts are almost like a magnet, we draw in what we think about.
So if you get up thinking this is going to be a sour day, you know you're going to have a sour day. But if you get up and thinking you know what, I believe I'm going to have favor today, God's blessings, I believe you'll see that.
CHETRY: Now, I wanted to get your take your take on this. There is a new study out about children and food stamps; it was through Cornell University. And they said that basically by -- at some point nearly half of all children ages 20 are going to be on food stamps at some point. And for African-American kids it's 90 percent.
As someone who preaches prosperity gospel what are your thoughts when we see that extreme level of disparity in a nation that's supposed to be so wealthy?
OSTEEN: You know it just saddens your heart and it makes you realize that we have to do everything we can to help, to change this. I don't know if I have all the answers on how to do it.
That's why even in our own ministry we're involved with an organization called "Feed the Children", just because you know, it doesn't seem right, you know, in our great nation that children should be like this, especially African-American children. I don't know all the answers but I do think that we all should do whatever we can to help others and to give every child a great chance.
CHETRY: You look back at some of the messages of Jesus; I mean, Jesus really did talk about loving everybody and just finding the value in all people. How do you think he would look at some of what we're going through right now where you see a real difference between the have and have nots. I mean, you see the people in Wall Street coming in, and many of the top executives with million dollar bonuses. And then you see people in Main Street that are struggling just to make it.
How would he want us to handle some of what we're seeing that is so disturbing to so many people?
OSTEEN: I think again, he would want those that have to reach out and help those that have not in any way. However we can lift them up, how we can get them through their time of difficulty. You know, as Jesus traveled when he was here on earth he reached out to the -- to every group of people.
So, I just think it's important that we not get too busy or caught up in ourselves. As you said earlier, every person has a purpose, they have a destiny. It's our job, those that have, that are blessed to say you know, how can I lift somebody else up. I've always learned if you make somebody else's day God will make your own day.
CHETRY: All right. Well, that's a lot of good advice this morning. And the book is called "It's Your Time." You write a lot of books, you're keeping busy. And this is another good one.
Thanks for being with us Pastor Joel Osteen. Great to see you again.
OSTEEN: Thank you. My pleasure.
CHETRY: I want to let people know, by the way, you can read an excerpt from Joel Osteen's new book online by going to our show page cnn.com/amfix.
It's 56 minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROBERTS: Oh yes. Everybody in New York City has the feeling tonight is a good night. Game six of the World Series, the Yankees home at the new stadium; it's all magic. What can you say? Sunny and 46 degrees, later on today, mostly sunny with a high of 51; going to be a great night weatherwise for the Yanks to beat the Phillies.
CHETRY: I'm just not going to say a word. We'll have to see what happens. We'll be watching. I'm not saying a word after 7:57. Lips are sealed.
ROBERTS: That's -- you do it from your husband. It's got nothing to do with the game itself.
Continue the conversation on today's stories; go to our blog at cnn.com/amfix.
Thanks for joining us. We'll see you again bright and early tomorrow morning.
CHETRY: We are glad to have you with us today.
And the news continues right now, "CNN NEWSROOM" with Heidi Collins. Good morning Heidi.
