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Party Crashers Attend State Dinner; Obama Thanks Troops in Thanksgiving Day Message; Macy's Parade Goes Off Without a Hitch; Judge Cancels Couple's Mortgage Debt; Backstage at Preparations for CNN Heroes Tribute
Aired November 26, 2009 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Fredricka Whitfield. The NEWSROOM continues on this Thanksgiving Day with our own Tony Harris.
TONY HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: Happy Thanksgiving.
WHITFIELD: I was a little nervous about segueing from the turkey story to...
HARRIS: To the jive turkey?
WHITFIELD: ... to "our own Tony Harris."
(CROSSTALK)
HARRIS: ... jive turkey.
WHITFIELD: Yes, well, you know...
HARRIS: You want to channel a little...
WHITFIELD: I wasn't going to say it.
HARRIS: ... Ohio players (ph) from back in the day.
(LAUGHTER)
HARRIS: Yes! Have a happy Thanksgiving.
WHITFIELD: All right, have a great holiday.
HARRIS: You, Big John (ph), Little John (ph) -- boy, enjoy the meal today.
WHITFIELD: We will indeed.
HARRIS: I know you whipped up a wonderful one. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family.
It is Thursday, November 26th, and here are faces of the stories driving the headlines. Tareq and Michaele Salahi, yes, the party crashers. The Secret Service tries to figure out how the couple got into the White House.
The Horoski family, mortgage debtors no more. A judge tears up their half-million-dollar loan to punish their lender.
And Kenneth Chancey, from homeless to Harvard, he hopes. An NFL star puts a high school senior on an inspiring path to success.
Good morning, everyone. I'm Tony Harris. And you are in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Boy, we begin with a stunning security blunder at the White House. We still can't believe this one. A Virginia couple described as aspiring reality TV stars could face criminal charges after crashing the Obamas' first state dinner. White House correspondent Dan Lothian joining me now live.
Dan, really?
DAN LOTHIAN, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes.
HARRIS: This happened in our post-9/11 world, really?
LOTHIAN: Yes, really. That's exactly what we're all asking here. We know, coming here every day, how tight security is. And when people are visiting, long before you get here to the White House, there is this background check that's conducted. You have to provide your date of birth, your Social Security number. Then when you get here to the White House, you have to show your government ID, issued ID, like a driver's license. They check on a list. If your name's on the list, then you can be escorted in here to the White House.
Well, as the Secret Service is now admitting, their name was not on the list, but somehow, they were able to get in on one of the biggest nights here at the Washington -- at the White House this year.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. and Mrs. Salahi...
LOTHIAN (voice-over): They sure did make a grand entrance. It's not clear if they ever got a seat at a table or got to eat some of the potato and eggplant salad, but they managed to plant themselves next to the most powerful people in Washington. Tareq and Michaele Salahi posted a dozen pictures on FaceBook. Here they are with Vice President Joe Biden and the White House chief of staff, Rahm Emanuel. Michaele even up close and personal with a few Marines.
But here's the one place the couple didn't show up, on the official guest list. The only person who seems to have sensed something was wrong was the reporter who broke the story.
ROXANNE ROBERTS, COLUMNIST, "WASHINGTON POST": When I saw them come in, I went, What -- I thought to myself, What on earth are they doing here?
LOTHIAN: So how do you crash a party at the White House? A spokesman for the couple would only say the two had full clearance to attend the dinner. The Secret Service confirmed it was investigating a breach and said initial findings suggest at least one checkpoint did not follow proper procedures. And once inside, the couple apparently just blended in.
ROBERTS: The assumption that everyone had -- presumably the staffers -- were that these people were meant to be here. They wouldn't have been able to get in unless someone had said it was OK.
LOTHIAN: The pair is described as polo-playing socialites from northern Virginia that are also reported to be in line for possible roles on the upcoming reality TV show "Real Housewives of D.C." CNN national security contributor Fran Townsend says they might now have an even harsher reality in their future.
FRANCES TOWNSEND, CNN NATIONAL SECURITY CONTRIBUTOR: If they lied their way to get in, and it seems they would have had to have done that, that's a federal felony of a false statement to a federal official. And so this is a pretty serious crime.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LOTHIAN: Now, the Secret Service is stressing that this couple did go through metal detectors and other security procedures that were in place that night not only for them but other guests who were arriving here and that the president was in no danger at all. But an investigation does continue, and I'm told by the Secret Service that additional employees will be interviewed.
HARRIS: I would imagine. All right, Dan Lothian at the White House for us. Dan, appreciate it.
You know, our chief medical correspondent, Dr. Sanjay Gupta, was on the guest list Tuesday night. He described the White House entry point as crowded, somewhat chaotic. And it was also raining, so everyone was in a bit of a hurry.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (via telephone): Walked in, and you did go through the metal detector. And then you walked upstairs into the East Room. At that point, you know, it was -- it was very -- it was pretty crowded in there. People were sort of mingling. That's where a lot of pictures were taking place.
What happened after that was that you were given a name card when you came in, and when you wanted to go into the receiving line to talk to the president and the first lady and the prime minister and his wife, you handed over that card to one of the social secretaries, and then you were in the receiving line. So I don't know if they were actually in the receiving line. It seems like it would have been hard to do that.
And then you went from there into the tent. The tents were all -- it was all assigned seating, at that point, which sort of makes sense as to why they probably left. But that's sort of how it worked. But it was that first checkpoint that if they got through that, they were probably were all set.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Well, a little more now about the party crashers, Tareq and Michaele Salahi. The Washingtonian Web site describes Michaele Salahi as a model, make-up consultant and a winery owner with husband Tareq. The couple are co-chairs of America's Polo Club. She was once a cheerleader for the NFL Washington Redskins. The pair will be Larry King's guests -- how about this? -- Monday night.
Big stories making CNN wire now. Philippine police file murder charges against a local politician. The mayor, with his head covered -- you'll see it in a second here -- is charged in Monday's massacre of 57 people who supported a political rival. Five others reportedly will face charges, among them three police officers.
And somber ceremonies (INAUDIBLE) candlelight vigils across Mumbai, India. Today is the first anniversary of a terror attack that left more than 160 people dead. Police say 10 Pakistani militants over four days and three nights stalked and killed people at three luxury hotels, Mumbai's main train station and a Jewish center.
President Obama is out with a Thanksgiving Day message, his comments focusing on the economy and health care. Here's a portion.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But as much as we have to be thankful for, we also know that this year, millions of Americans are facing very difficult economic times. Many have lost jobs in this recession, the worst in generations. Many more are struggling to afford health care premiums and house payments, let alone to save for an education or retirement. Too many are wondering if the dream of a middle class life, that American dream, is slipping away.
That's why we passed the Recovery Act that cut taxes for 95 percent of working people and for small businesses and that extended unemployment benefits and health coverage for millions of Americans who lost their jobs in this turmoil. That's why we're reforming the health care system so that middle class families have affordable insurance that cannot be denied because of a preexisting condition or taken away because you happen to get sick.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: We are digging for details on President Obama's war strategy for Afghanistan. He will announce the plan five days from now in an address to the nation.
Live now to CNN's Elaine Quijano at the Pentagon for us. Elaine, good to see you. During his Thanksgiving message today, did the president discuss the troops?
ELAINE QUIJANO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: He did, Tony. In fact, like other commanders-in-chief before him, President Obama took the opportunity to thank the men and women of the armed forces for their service, and just days away from when the president is set to make that announcement on his new Afghanistan strategy, the president made clear that those men and women, as well as their families, are very much on his mind. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: We keep in our thoughts and prayers the many families marking this Thanksgiving with an empty seat saved for a son or daughter, a husband or a wife, stationed in harm's way. We say a special thanks for the sacrifices those men and women in uniform are making for our safety and freedom and for all those Americans who enrich the lives of our communities through acts of kindness and generosity and service.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUIJANO: Now, Tuesday night at West Point, the president is expected to unveil that new Afghanistan strategy. And we are learning more about the military's plans, Tony. Specifically, we know that the first wave of those additional U.S. forces to Afghanistan are going to start deploying in late December. That's according to a U.S. military official.
We know that after the president makes his announcement, Defense Secretary Robert Gates is expected to get the paperwork to deploy some 1,000 Marines from Camp Lejeune to Afghanistan. And Tony, those are going to be the first of roughly 34,000 troops that are expected eventually over the next year or so to make their way to Afghanistan -- Tony.
HARRIS: OK. So here we go. Elaine Quijano at the Pentagon for us. Elaine, thank you.
The president will make his strategy speech regarding Afghanistan next Tuesday at 8:00 PM Eastern time. CNN's special coverage starts at 7:00 Eastern. We will, of course, carry the address right here live on CNN. And we'd like to make a personal appeal to you to watch the speech and share your thoughts with us. Now, after the speech Tuesday, you can go to my blog, CNN.com/Tony, and leave us your thoughts. Or you can send us an iReport. That address is CNN.com/ireport. A large portion of our newscast on Wednesday will be devoted to your reaction to the president's decision.
Tough times in a tough economy. A New York couple is thankful for a judge who wiped away their mortgage. Can a judge do that? Find out how that happened. And Reynolds Wolf is tracking holiday weather. We'll check in on that trip to Grandma's house. Nice work, Doctor! We're back in a moment. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Oh, this was good yesterday! Just because we can and because we like it so much, we thought we'd bring you a little free bird flashback. This, of course, is Courage, the turkey who President Obama so graciously pardoned yesterday. He is now living out had his retirement in California at Disneyland. Good stuff.
Reynolds Wolf, no such luck for the Harris turkey. Down the hatch, T-minus three hours and counting, Doctor!
REYNOLDS WOLF, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Yes, it sure seems that way.
HARRIS: Yes!
WOLF: Yes. I mean, that's going to be the situation for a lot of people.
HARRIS: Oh, yes.
WOLF: You know, turkeys actually, believe it or not -- I know they don't seem like their flight -- that they fly, but they are actually flying birds. Wild turkeys can actually fly.
HARRIS: OK.
WOLF: Flying today, believe it or not, is not going to be a big issue for a lot of people, especially around the nation. Take a look at this. We have no delays to speak of.
However, I can tell you, Tony, that downstairs in...
HARRIS: Oh, yes!
WOLF: ... the CNN cafeteria, we do have a little bit of a backup, and that will be people trying to enjoy the holiday goodies. Take a look at the great crew there. They always work awfully hard, and the food is phenomenal.
HARRIS: Oh, terrific.
WOLF: You see people there lining up and getting in. And Tony, do you think there's going to be some kind of correlation between the amount of food they eat and the lack of productivity here at CNN this afternoon?
(LAUGHTER)
HARRIS: I think that -- that -- there's already evidence of that!
(LAUGHTER)
WOLF: I think that's going to be the case. I mean, maybe after the fifth or sixth helping of pumpkin pie...
HARRIS: Sure. Sure.
WOLF: ... and stuffing and all that, we're going to see the...
HARRIS: Oh, that's going to be good!
WOLF: Yes. Exactly, kind of lethargic.
HARRIS: Nice. WOLF: Hey, the weather in parts of the country has really not been that lethargic for the Northeast. We're seeing a storm system that is making its way just off the coast. Some heavy wave action might be expected for the Outer Banks and for the Jersey shore. But when you get back to the Great Lakes, you have this area of low pressure that we're dealing with right here. And this low is actually going to track its way to the east, bringing scattered showers, maybe a rumble of thunder in the Ohio Valley, but also some snow into parts of Michigan.
But when you get back across the nation's midsection, you get a giant turkey mixed in with some sunshine. And for the Pacific Northwest, look for rain from San Francisco northward to Seattle, right near Puget Sound. But in the higher elevations of the Cascades, there's a chance you may be dealing with a touch of snowfall.
Very quickly, as we (INAUDIBLE) things out here, temperatures on this Thanksgiving Day, 40 degrees in Chicago, 54 the high in Memphis, 58 in Atlanta, 69 degrees in Tampa, 79 in Miami, 80 degrees in Phoenix and 77 in Los Angeles.
That is a look at your forecast on this Thanksgiving Day. Folks, we got a whole lot more coming up right here at CNN. We'll see you in a few. Happy Thanksgiving.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAJOR BRETT FEDDERSON, HARRISBURG, PA: Hello. I'm Andrew Brett Feddersen with 2nd 104th Aviation Task Force Diablo in Camp Otter (ph), Iraq. I'd like to say happy Thanksgiving to my wife, Julie (ph), and my two boys, Alec (ph) and Thomas (ph), and all my friends and family in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Take care.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Very nice. So Santa's got a new suped-up ride. He gave it a test run at the 83rd Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade in New York -- new sleigh, new balloons, even a new route. The parade just wrapping up. Our Deborah Feyerick is there. And Deb, hey, did you get a good look at Santa's new sleigh? And is there any truth to the rumor it's a "cash for clunkers" upgrade?
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: You know, Tony, what I can tell you -- it's so loud here. The reason -- this is the sound of a parade after it's passed you by, OK? You've got a lot of these street sweepers that are going.
I want to show you something that's kind of interesting. If you can see the man in the cherry picker there, just to his left is what -- an orange wind gauge. The wind was perfect today. The balloons were able to get up to their maximum 40 feet, 40, 45 feet. So everything worked perfectly.
Right now, a lot of cleanup. Folks who came for the parade, they're heading out. But there was so much energy, a day of family, a day to celebrate being together. Two of those who watched the parade, Harry (ph) and Stella (ph), what was your favorite part?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My favorite part was when all of the balloons were coming by and all of the confetti was getting sprayed around.
FEYERICK: There's a lot of confetti. As a matter of fact, that's one of the things they're cleaning up right now, isn't it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
FEYERICK: Now, what was your favorite part, Stella?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My favorite part was seeing True Jackson (ph) and Mitchell Moussea (ph). And I really liked the confetti, and my favorite float was SpongeBob.
FEYERICK: SpongeBob. SpongeBob was huge! Are these floats bigger in person or not?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're bigger in person.
FEYERICK: Yes, they kind of look small on television, but in real life, they're pretty huge.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
FEYERICK: Now, what are you thankful for this Thanksgiving?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm thankful for food and shelter.
FEYERICK: OK, what about you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Families and friends.
FEYERICK: Families and friends, food and shelter. What more could you want! Again, a great parade, a really good day. Tony, have a wonderful Thanksgiving.
HARRIS: Yes, Deb, you, too. Great to see those kids. They look like they had a great time. Good to see you. Thanks.
And talk about a happy Thanksgiving, boy, listen to this story. A judge in New York frees a couple from crushing debt, helping them avoid foreclosure. He also has some not so nice words for the couple's lenders. The Horoski family is just one of our faces of the story today.
Here is Andrew Ehinger with News 12 Long Island.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDREW EHINGER, NEWS 12 LONG ISLAND (voice-over): Kimberly Horoski's parents, Greg and Diana, don't have to worry about a mortgage payment anymore. The half million dollars they owed on their East Patchogue home was just wiped clean by the stroke of a judge's pen.
KIMBERLY HOROSKI, PARENTS MORTGAGE DEBT WAS ERASED: I don't think they expected any of this to happen, to be very honest with you!
EHINGER: The Horoskis say it started a few years ago, when they fell behind on their mortgage and were only paying the interest. So they tried to negotiate a lower interest rate with their mortgage holder, One West Bank. But according to the Horoskis, One West wouldn't budge, demanding more money or a foreclosure. The fight ended up in court, and after months of negotiations, Suffolk Judge Jeffrey Spinner got fed up with the bank, saying, "The plaintiffs' actions toward the defendant in this matter have been harsh, repugnant, shocking and repulsive to the extent that it must be appropriately sanctioned." With that, Judge Spinner completely erased the couple's mortgage debt.
HOROSKI: It wasn't like my parents were just deadbeats. So I'm happy that the judge finally said that poor business practices won't be condoned.
EHINGER (on camera): Neighbors, who were stunned to hear the judge's decision, say they couldn't be happier for the family.
NIKI BALKIN, NEIGHBOR: That is really nice, especially upcoming holidays. It's a good surprise. That's nice.
EHINGER (voice-over): One West Bank is expected to appeal the decision. Meantime, Kimberly Horoski says the family is giving thanks for an early holiday gift.
HOROSKI: My parents are good people. They're smart people. And I feel bad that they had very poor luck, and I'm happy that it's been changed.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Boy, what a story.
Let's get you caught up now on our top stories. Autopsies are planned on four bodies found in a home in the Chicago suburb of Addison. Police say the victims are likely family members who lived in the home. Shell casings were found around their bodies.
Tragedy deep in a Utah cave. A man got trapped upside down in a crevasse about 18 inches wide for more than 24 hours. One of the rescue cords being used to free him failed, and he fell back into the crevasse and died.
The crew of the shuttle Atlantis wrapping up its 11-day supply mission to the International Space Station. Today they're checking the ship for the ride home, and they're aiming for a Friday landing in Florida.
A Thanksgiving away from home and in the war zone. We will visit with U.S. troops far from home.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SPEC. BRETT PODINKER, MATAWAN, NJ: Hi. My name is Specialist Podinker with Bravo Company 628 out here at (INAUDIBLE) Iraq. I'd like to give a happy Thanksgiving out to my friends and family back home, Matawan, New Jersey, and to my wife, Jeanine (ph), and my son, Tyler (ph). And go Giants!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: So the countdown is on to tonight's "Heroes" tribute at 9:00 o'clock Eastern time, giving thanks to the year's top 10 most heroic and inspiring people. CNN's Anderson Cooper went behind the scenes to check out the buzz.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Hey, Welcome to the Kodak Theater. We're rehearsing for "Heroes," just getting ready the day before the big event. You can see on state, they're getting ready for one of the musical performers to practice. Got some great musical performances lined up. We also try to figure out camera angles for all those. There's a lot of different cameras in here. So there's actually cards in all the seats for the different people who are going to be sitting here. Like, this is where Neil Patrick Harris, who's presenting, is going to be. They won't actually look like this. They'll actually be the actual person, not just a picture of them.
But the "Heroes" have just arrived here. They just got into town yesterday. So let's go and meet them. I haven't met them yet, so we'll go and say hi.
Hey, guys.
(CROSSTALK)
COOPER: How are you? So nice to meet you. I'm Anderson. How are you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi. How are you? Jorge.
COOPER: How's it going? I know.
(CROSSTALK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I've seen you on TV.
COOPER: Oh, yes?
(LAUGHTER)
COOPER: I've seen you on TV, as well. How are you?
Have you been inside the theater yet? Oh, all right. Well, that'll make you nervous, actually.
(LAUGHTER)
COOPER: I'm not going to lie about that.
We talked to some of the presenters to find out why they wanted to be here tonight.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Anderson Cooper threatened me personally to show up here or there'd be trouble. So here I am. The idea that -- is a very simple one. I mean, to thank people that have done just amazing things and honor them in this forum is kind of exciting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This whole show is inspirational. I saw it last year, and I was just inspired, touched, moved.
COOPER: It takes an army to put "Heroes" into motion, and this is the guy who's commanding the troops, Joel Gallen (ph). He's the executive producer and he's also the director.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're here for our third year doing the broadcast of probably the most important show I produce. I think we got a very special show. I think it's going to be our best one of the three. We have Leona Lewis (ph). We have Carrie Underwood. And we Max (ph), all singing songs that are themed around sort of the message of the show, helping people, changing the world.
COOPER: As you can see, there are many people here who are making this special evening possible. All of us are working to help celebrate the lives of everyday people who are making extraordinary differences in the world. Join us as we honor them this Thanksgiving night.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: And be sure to watch "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute," tonight at 9:00 Eastern and Pacific.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CAPT. KEN SULLIVAN, COLORADO SPRINGS, CO: His is Captain Ken Sullivan, Baghdad, Iraq. I want to say happy Thanksgiving to my family in Colorado Springs and happy birthday to my girls.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: U.S. troops across Afghanistan were treated to the traditional Thanksgiving Day meal today. Nearly 70,000 American service members are in the country. Our Frederik Pleitgen is in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan.
And Fred, the military wanted to make sure everybody got the traditional fixings. So how was that accomplished in the more remote outposts? FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It was actually incredible, Tony.
First of all, Happy Thanksgiving to you. We were on helicopters today for the better part of the day. I rode in Chinook helicopter for six hours today with the U.S. Combat Aviation Brigade, that was bringing Thanksgiving meals to every single combat outpost, even the most remote ones here in southern Afghanistan.
I can tell you it was something that took a very, very long time and something that was very, very dangerous. Really, when we flew into some of these places, we could only stay on the ground for a couple minutes. They would send in a fork lift to unload the helicopters. They rotors were spinning the whole time. They told us that they would not leave a single combat outpost out, even the most remote ones.
We were in some that were in very dangerous places. We landed in one combat outpost, which is in Adabo (ph) Province, which also here in southwestern Afghanistan, where that unit had lost 21 men in the past six months alone. So certainly very dangerous place.
I can tell you the troops that got those Thanksgiving meals were so happy to see that helicopter come, to see those meals being unloaded. It was an absolutely wonderful sight. The pilots I spoke to said it was an absolutely rewarding experience for them. And they would work Thanksgiving and they would work Christmas, they would work any day to make sure the guys on the ground got their meals, and got at least a piece of the holiday, just to feel a little bit at home, Tony.
HARRIS: Those are some terrific pictures that your team fed back to us, Fred. Just reminds us of the enormous sacrifice all those service members are making.
Good to see you, Fred. Fred Pleitgen for us in Kandahar. Happy Thanksgiving to you, my friend.
As we enjoy those long-awaited Thanksgiving Day feasts, many Americans are thinking about those less fortunate who suffer from hunger. Our Josh Levs is here to show us how we can all help.
Josh, good to see you.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good to see you, Tony.
There was this headline on dot.com, not long ago. Let's zoom in. It has a lot of people talking, a lot of people thinking about this especially on Thanksgiving.
"U.N. Chief, Hunger Kills 17,000 Kids Daily".
I have some statistics for you, and graphics. These are from the United States. Just here, 49.1 million people inside the United States are in food insecure households, that is according to the Department of Agriculture. Within that, we'll show you here, the number of children is 16.7 million children in food insecure households. Ultimately we are talking about one in six Americans.
And all those figures come from 2008. We all know what the economy has been like throughout this past year. We have plenty of indications the number of hungry in America has gone up, difficult times. Let me show you how you can help.
Let us zoom back in here. CNN.com/impact, has a whole section for you right here. I'll zoom through it, so you will be able to see how it works. At any given moment you can find out about all sorts of different ways to help people.
What I did here, is I brought you specifically to the section on poverty and hunger. Zoom in here. It says take action. It will link you to numerous organizations that help people who are facing hunger. For example, I'll show you over here. Oxfam International, this is one of the organizations that we talked to you about. Here's another one over here, Action Against Hunger. We give you information about them.
And there's also something else that's really interesting. What we do is we hook you up to charity navigator. This is a group that basically vets these organizations, and gives you information about them to help you feel more comfortable if you're going make a donation. All of that, everything I just showed you, is all right here at Impact Your World.
This also -- I'll show you one more thing here. This is good to work your way through. We talked to you about poverty. We also talked to you about other problems around world, refugees, health, natural disasters, issues involving children. You can scroll through these and at any given time you can click on one of these. It will bring you to organizations that focus on that. Here's one on the environment. All sorts of organization we hook you up to. It really is a very strong resource, Tony. All at Impact Your World, CNN.com/impact.
HARRIS: Josh, appreciate it. Happy Thanksgiving to you.
LEVS: You've got it.
HARRIS: See you next hour.
Let's get you to the Weather Center now and Reynolds Wolf.
(WEATHER REPORT)
HARRIS: Still to come, a group of smart college students sound off on what to do in Afghanistan ahead of the president's decision day. I'm the moderator in chief. Class is in session.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Let's get you caught up now on our top stories this Thanksgiving Day.
Some 2.5 million Muslims are taking part in the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia; it is day two of the ritual when the faithful climb the mountain of mercy to pray for forgiveness.
A Swiss judge rules director Roman Polanski can be released from jail and placed under house arrest if he posts a $4.5 million bail. Polanski, as you know, is fighting extradition to the United States. He faces charges for having sex with a 13-year-old girl in 1977.
Skipping Thanksgiving, eager black Friday shoppers, can you believe this, they are already gathering outside stores to be first in line for bargains? This is the scene at a Best Buy store in Elk Grove, California. People wrapped in sleeping bags and huddled in tents to get those door buster deals.
President Obama will lay out his new strategy for the war in Afghanistan in a national address next week, after many weeks of debate. As part of my "Class in Session" series, I recently asked a group of smart students at Georgia State, how the U.S. should move forward. Check it out, "Class is in Session".
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS (On camera): You're sitting in the room with the president, OK? You've got to plot the next steps forward for Afghanistan. You have three choices. Counterinsurgency, counterterrorism, you have a slow responsible drawdown. Where do you stand?
GREG ABT, PRESIDENT, STUDENT GOV'T. ASSN. GSU: Obviously the key reason for being Afghanistan in the first place is to combat the terrorists. Terrorists are being harbored by Taliban local governments.
HARRIS: Why are we still fighting in Afghanistan eight years later? I remember the secretary of State, at the time, Condoleezza Rice saying that the Taliban had been defeated.
LACEY ENYART, FMR. SPECIAL FORCES, MEMBER: Studies show counterinsurgencies take about 30 years. The reason the mujahedeen and the Afghan people have been successful when any dominating power has come in because they're willing to wait people out.
HARRIS: Are you willing to commit for 30 years in Afghanistan? Whatever the force the troop level is, is that something you're willing to do?
ENYART: As long as Al Qaeda and terrorists have the intention of attacking United States people, on our soil, then you have to be able to leave the fight over there. And limit their ability to plan and train.
HARRIS: You are advocating however long it takes, whatever it takes, essentially?
ENYART: Within reason, with a good plan. You can stay over there for 100 years with a bad plan and you are not going to improve anything. But you need to have a good plan, which is nation building.
HARRIS: Wow! You're signing onto that.
JOSH GOLDBLATT, GRADUATE, INT'L. RELATIONS: When we decided to take over their government, when we decided to overthrow whoever was there, we claimed that responsibility.
HARRIS: Was that your understanding when we went into Afghanistan after 9/11? Was that your understanding that we could be there a generation?
ZACHARY MCFALL, FMR. PRES., YOUNG DEMOCRATS OF GEORGIA, GSU: I didn't understand that we could be there a generation but I also thought that we went in with coalition forces. And right now it's my understanding that we really don't have any help. We're going to be spending either money, or our soldier's blood, one way or the other if we don't defeat this enemy.
HARRIS: We have to stay?
MCFALL: We have to. We have to finish what we started.
HARRIS: Anyone advocating a withdraw at all?
JOHN MURRAY, CHAIR, COLLEGE REPUBLICANS, GSU: If we immediately pull out or remove our influence, it just turns to a bad situation where tyranny takes place.
STEVEN FIELDS, PRES., CRIMINAL JUSTIE STUDENT ASSN., GSU: I think we are almost morally obligated now to rebuild the country. But at the same time we should be moving out of the country. We really have to refocus our mission over there.
CLAUDIA RIVERA, MEMBER, LATINO STUDENT COUNCIL, GSU: To build a nation you have to get the people involved. Avoid the corruption and actually go to the people, and provide aid to them. Because that's how you're going get their allegiance if you provide education, if you provide clean water. If you provide the basic principles for them to live, a crop that is other than opium. That they can get money and feed their families, then they will be happy and they will help you any way they can.
ENYART: That doesn't really work. Because you provide them aid and the Taliban either do retribution towards them for accepting the aid, they steal the aid, they attack the people while they're getting aid, and that causes a lot of public outcry.
I mean, the problem with counterinsurgency is that it takes time and it's hard. And at the end of the day it's just hard. And so in order to protect our country, it's something we have to do.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: There you have it, "Class in Session".
You may remember Kenneth Chauncey . We profiled the straight-A student athlete who happens to be homeless. Now someone has stepped forward to help him on the road to college. We're back in a moment.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SGT. VERONICA WEBER, U.S. ARMY: Hi, I'm Sergeant Veronica Weber.
SGT. JACOB WEBER, U.S. ARMY: I'm Sergeant Jacob Weber.
V. WEBER: And we are at Camp Spike (ph), Iraq, we want to say Happy Thanksgiving to everyone in Haskell, Texas and Weatherford, Texas.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Once again some special programming this afternoon. Thanksgiving afternoon on CNN: "Veterans in Focus," "Service, Struggle and Success", CNN's Tom Foreman hosts. Here's a preview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm still a musician but I spend most of my days playing just one piece.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: After returning from Iraq I decided to come out to myself.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was in the United States Marine, artillery cannonare (ph).
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's so important to have ships like this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We were shooting at them, they were shooting at us. And that's all you think about.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HARRIS: Our CNN photo journalists turned their cameras on the men and women of the American military. "Veterans in Focus" 2:00 Eastern only on CNN. Find details at cnn.com/veterans.
Now the inspiring story of a student, a straight A student, an athlete and a senior class president - did I mention he was homeless? Kenneth Chauncey is also one of our "Faces of the Story" today. Thelma Gutierrez profiles a teen whose struggles led to some high wattage help.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice over): He's the highest paid defensive back in NFL history. He's about to give this teenager the surprise of his life.
When we first aired your story, so many people wanted to help you. There was one person in particular who came forward, who wanted to meet you. Do you have any idea who it is? KENNETH CHAUNCEY, STUDENT: No, I keep on hearing.
GUTIERREZ: We met Kenneth Chauncey and his little sister, Stephanie, earlier this year. They lived on skid row, in a shelter in downtown Los Angeles, where life is uncensored but a step up from what it used to be.
CHAUNCEY: I lived in a van. Let's see, my mom used drugs. My stepdad used to hit me.
GUTIERREZ: What makes Kenneth's story so extraordinary is that this homeless teenager is president of his high school. He's a straight A honor student and an athlete.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Asomugha has proven he's up, up there with the rest of the top corners in the NFL. He might just be the best.
GUTIERREZ: Kenneth is a starting running back at Helen Bernstein High School, he's going to college.
(On camera): Give me a list of the top schools. Where do you want to go to college?
CHAUNCEY: Harvard's still on top.
GUTIERREZ: From skid row to Harvard. Lofty ambitions that moved this NFL star to ask us to arrange a meeting.
(AUDIO GAP)
GUTIERREZ (voice over): He's the highest-paid defensive back in NFL history, and he's about to give this teenager the surprise of his life.
(On camera): When we first aired your story so many people wanted to help you.
CHAUNCEY: Yeah.
GUTIERREZ: But there was one person in particular who came forward, who wanted to meet you.
CHAUNCEY: Yeah.
GUTIERREZ: Do you have any idea who it is?
CHAUNCEY: No, I keep on hearing.
Hallelujah
GUTIERREZ: We met Kenneth Chauncey and his little sister Stephanie earlier this year.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm going to EXPLETIVE DELETED you up. EXPLETIVE DELETED you. GUTIERREZ: They on skid row in a shelter in downtown Los Angeles, where life is uncensored, but a step up from what it used to be.
CHAUNCEY: I lived in a van. Let's see, my mom used drugs. My stepdad used to hit me.
GUTIERREZ: What makes Kenneth's story so extraordinary is that this homeless teenager is president of his high school. He's a straight-A honor student and an athlete.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Asomugha has proven that he is up -- up there with the rest of the top corners in the NFL, and he might just be the best.
GUTIERREZ: Kenneth is a starting running back at Helen Bernstein High School. He's going to college.
(On camera): Give me a list of the top schools. Where do you want to go to college?
CHAUNCEY: Harvard's still on top.
GUTIERREZ: From skid row to Harvard, lofty ambitions that moved this NFL star to ask us to arrange a meeting.
This is Nnamdi Asomugha, he's with the Oakland Raiders.
CHAUNCEY: Yes, I did hear!
(LAUGHTER)
CHAUNCEY: That's awesome they were just talking about -- the coach was talking about you yesterday.
GUTIERREZ: What was the reason that you wanted to be here to meet Kenneth?
NNAMDI ASOMUGHA, CORNERBACK, OAKLAND RAIDERS: Well, we saw the story, you know, on CNN. And, you know, I was just blown away by it. You know, just your drive and everything you're trying to do, and you were playing football and all that stuff. So, I was -- I was relating, you know, a little bit to that. So I said, man, there's got to be some way, you know, that I can get in touch with him.
GUTIERREZ (voice over): Number 21, Nnamdi Asomugha is an all-pro cornerback with the Oakland Raiders. At 28 he has his own foundation. The Asomugha College Tour for scholars.
(On camera): This is a serious student, right?
ASOMUGHA: Yeah.
GUTIERREZ: Does he qualify for your tour?
ASOMUGHA: Absolutely. He might over qualify for the tour. GUTIERREZ (voice over): Each year Asomugha hand picks a group of inner-city high school students and takes them on a weeklong, all- expense-paid trip to visit different universities.
(On camera): Education is number one in your family. And I understand, with all due respect, but I do understand you are the least educated in your entire family.
ASOMUGHA: Yes. I am, because I have one degree.
GUTIERREZ (voice over): Asomugha's mother has a Ph.D. His sister is a pediatrician. His other two siblings have graduate degrees. Nnamdi only has one, a degree in finance from UC Berkeley.
CHAUNCEY: And then we have my dad, Gordon Costello here.
ASOMUGHA: How is it going, buddy?
GUTIERREZ: The next college tour for Asomugha's kids, Washington, D.C.
ASOMUGHA: I knew how much you were a big fan of school and education and that stuff, so I wanted to invite you along for tour.
CHAUNCEY: Oh, you serious?
ASOMUGHA: Yeah.
CHAUNCEY: Oh, my God!
GUTIERREZ (On camera): So, what's in store for Washington?
ASOMUGHA: Do you know who we're working on now?
CHAUNCEY: Obama?
ASOMUGHA: We have to.
CHAUNCEY: Oh, my God!
GUTIERREZ: This spring the NFL star will take Kenneth into the heart of the nation's capital.
ASOMUGHA: My pitch to you, President Obama, please give us some time while we're in D.C. These kids will go crazy if they meet you. You will inspire them.
GUTIERREZ: But first Kenneth takes the Oakland Raider on a tour of his own, to skid row, downtown Los Angeles where he lived.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: Whew, boy, Thelma Gutierrez continues the story of Kenneth Chauncey in just a few moments.
And here's what we're working on for the next hour CNN NEWSROOM. Whether you plan to wait in line or shop online, our Gerri Willis has everything you need to know about Black Friday deals.
And we'll hear more from the reporter that broke the story of the White House party crashers!
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HARRIS: Keep your head up. That is the mantra of a homeless teen beating the odds with straight As and strong leadership.
CNN's Thelma Gutierrez continues her story on Kenneth Chauncey, and the NFL star helping him.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GUTIERREZ (voice over): Skid row is downtown Los Angeles.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You see the bottles sitting over there?
GUTIERREZ: It is one of the last places you'd expect to find an NFL star and a straight-A honor student.
ASOMUGHA: Just walking to school, walking back from school.
CHAUNCEY: This is just walking to the strain to get to school.
ASOMUGHA: Anywhere you go, you got to go through this.
CHAUNCEY: Yeah, we have to go through this.
GUTIERREZ: But the pursuit of education brought them here together.
ASOMUGHA: We used to come down here in high school and, like, feed the people out here during Thanksgiving.
GUTIERREZ: Nnamdi Asomugha plays for the Oakland Raiders and is the highest-paid defensive back in NFL history. Kenneth Chauncey is 17, a starting high school running back who aspires to study medicine at Harvard University.
CHAUNCEY: I'm student body president.
ASOMUGHA: And you had to organize --
CHAUNCEY: To feed the homeless.
GUTIERREZ: What no one knew was that this accomplished high school senior, who organized feedings for the homeless, was actually living on skid row himself, with his father and younger sister.
CHAUNCEY: So, imagine, you got a 15-year-old little girl walking through this every day.
GUTIERREZ: Kenneth took the 28-year-old NFL star on an unsettling tour through a part of Los Angeles most never experience.
ASOMUGHA: Wow! That almost hit me!
GUTIERREZ: But a place Kenneth knows well, his academic success, despite all of this is the reason that Nnamdi Asomugha is here.
ASOMUGHA: My thing is reaching out to people like Kenneth, that have their back against the wall, that have a lot of obstacles that they have to face. And they're still overcoming, you know? You never want them to stop.
GUTIERREZ: Four years ago at the age of 24, Asomugha started his own foundation, called the Asomugha College Tour for Scholars. For one week each year, kids like Kenneth have a chance to leave their neighborhoods, and experience different universities and cities. Kenneth is Asomugha's latest recruit.
CHAUNCEY: Well, we used to live in that corner room.
GUTIERREZ: Asomugha wanted to see where he came from, so Kenneth took us to the Union Rescue Mission where he lived.
CHAUNCEY: Here there was no room. There is a lot of people who went to bat for me, but I worked for the two-year olds and the three- year olds. They haven't even started the pressure.
GUTIERREZ: Here, the kids can't play in their rooms. They are too small. They can't go outside. It's too dangerous. So Kenneth says he comes here to the roof of the shelter to study.
You see the contrast right here.
CHAUNCEY: Yes, it's like this, you're like, oh, this is so nice, yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's amazing. He was explaining it, he said, when you come up, it's kind of like just keep your head up and you see all the good things. And then once you look down, he's absolutely right. Was that your mantra that you basically used while you're up here, keep your head up?
CHAUNCEY: That's what I use in life. I just keep my head up. OK I'm dealing with this now, five years from now I'll be at a university studying this, this, and this, I'll be graduating and getting a degree.
GUTIERREZ: Then Kenneth says he'll give back, too, just like Asomugha, the all-pro cornerback who graduated from UC Berkeley and has done so much to change the lives of disadvantaged scholars, just like Kenneth. Thelma Gutierrez, CNN, Los Angeles.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HARRIS: That is good stuff.
