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Frenzy of Looting in Haiti; Child Slaves: After the Quake; Surgery on Board USS Vinson

Aired January 18, 2010 - 14:00   ET

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

ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: Let's go back to my colleague, Anderson Cooper. He's been on the phone with some pretty dramatic unrest on the streets of Port-au-Prince.

Anderson, we spoke to you a little while and you used the phrase "frenzy of looting." What's the situation now?

Anderson, you there?

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I'm sorry. There was frenzy on this street, on this one store. It has died down.

It got very bad though before it was over. Last time we talked, it was just starting to shift, but then a number of young men began to push their way to the front.

They were armed with sticks, they armed with 2 x 4s, with nails hammered into them. There were young men with large knives, with screwdrivers, whatever they could grab, and they began to fight amongst themselves.

One person would steal a sack of candles or whatever else they were able to take from the store. A group of four or five young men would descend on him in a gang and start beating him. We saw one young man being whipped by a belt that caused bloody -- a large amount of blood to come from his arm.

A little boy was caught in the melee right outside the store. Young men on top of the store who had been sort of controlling the flow of loot from the store began throwing large stones down into the crowd.

(GUNFIRE)

COOPER: They are now firing up into the air, some Haitian police officers. I don't know if you could hear that on the phone that I'm on. They are just trying to disperse what's left of the crowd. Essentially, the store is now completely looted.

But as I said, they began to throw stones -- or rocks, I should say -- or large rocks into the crowd. I think a little boy was hit in the head, because he collapsed down on the street in the midst of the crowd in a pool of blood, and he was able to be pulled away.

But it's largely dispersed now, but, you know, the crowd has actually just moved half a block away to another store.

(GUNFIRE)

Oh! Excuse me. All right. They are just firing very close to my head, but they're firing up in the air, the Haitian police officers.

The crowd itself at this point does not seem to be armed with any actual real firepower. And most of the police have barricaded themselves around.

Now two Haitian police officers are running into this other crowd that is now around another store about half a block away. The sense is they're going to maybe fire into the crowd a little bit more.

They're trying to push them -- they basically now have secured an intersection in downtown Port-au-Prince, but the crowd now -- I mean, there's maybe 200 to 300 -- again, more shots. And there's more shots.

The entire crowd of several hundred people is now running down toward the port area. But the way this works is, I mean, the Haitian police fire into the air for a little bit, and then the crowds quickly come back because there is just not enough police officers. There are literally two police officers in this entire -- you know, from what I can tell -- four-block radius of downtown Port-au-Prince, and they're being employed by an American businessman who owns two stores here. And he had just hired them to try to keep his store safe.

He literally armed them with automatic weapons, he gave them water. I imagine maybe he's paying their salary for the day. I'm not sure about that. But there's not...

(CROSSTALK)

VELSHI: Anderson, earlier we heard the gunshots. We actually have pictures of those, the police firing into the air. They're doing it now a little more frequently.

What's the effect on the crowd when the police fire their weapons?

COOPER: You're seeing video that I shot on my small camera about 40 minutes ago. The effect -- well, you probably see it for yourself -- the crowd ducks, they disperse, they get scared, but within a minute they are back.

If there are items still to be looted in a place, there is virtually nothing the police can do because there's just not enough police. I mean, literally, two police officers here. It's like Whack-A-Mole. As soon as you turn your back and move somewhere else, people come back to where they were before.

You know, this little boy who got hit in the head, he's now -- I actually picked him up from the crowd and ran him to his relatives. Picked him up and brought him to the relatives behind the barricades, but he had blood gushing from his head. It's all over me.

VELSHI: Anderson, this is the boy you're talking about that got hit by the rocks that were being thrown?

COOPER: Yes, a stone. I don't know if it was one rock or a stone. I saw one man on top throwing a stone. I don't know if that's the stone that hit this little boy, but nobody was helping him. They started to run away because people were throwing rocks. But they were just leaving this little boy.

VELSHI: Anderson, what's the sense of -- I mean, I know it's hard to make out if people are just taking everything that's in the store. But is there some sense that it's goods that are being taken for people's own consumption or is there some sense that this is being sold immediate? Or can you tell?

COOPER: No, this is literally being sold from the store. I mean, the guys on the roofs control the flow of the candles. You know, they are the ones who are actually taking the stuff. And then they are literally selling it right there.

Women come up with crumpled money and negotiate a price amidst this crowd screaming and hand over cash. And so it is a very rudimentary form of business. It's the kind of real-life business we are seeing here now on the streets of Port-au-Prince.

And those women will take it and then resell it elsewhere in the city where people are desperate to have some sort of candles because there is no electricity. So it's business.

And, you know, this is not something which is acceptable behavior to most people in Port-au-Prince. Just a few blocks from here, as I was running here -- you know, I guess it was about an hour and a half ago -- there were people kind of shaking their heads and saying, you know, this is not right. These people are looting. This is not starving people who need food. These are young thugs who are breaking into businesses to profit.

VELSHI: Anderson, any sense around you of normalcy? You're obviously -- the pictures we're seeing that you have shot show a downtown that is -- stores are closed up, people are looting. Is there any sense of normal functioning society and business around you?

COOPER: No. There's nothing normal here. There's nothing normal.

VELSHI: And are you still seeing the same situation that you were reporting on last night, whether there was still some concentration on people moving coffins and bodies, or are you in a different part of the city where it does seem to have shifted over to this?

COOPER: The visible bodies have largely been connected. I mean, I drove by a pile of bodies yesterday, but you see that less and less.

The bodies that were out on the streets have largely been picked up by bulldozers, put into dump trucks, buried in mass graves, or taken, dragged through the streets. Maybe put in a coffin, dragged in a wheelbarrow or blanket...

VELSHI: Yes, we saw that.

COOPER: ... and being shoved into old crypts into the cemetery.

You still smell bodies. There's bodies all around. But they are crushed in rubble underneath rubble.

The reason I'm even here is I came down to a building where there is an American woman whose body is in rubble, still. And we know her name. We have handed her name over to the State Department. We don't know if her family has been notified, so we're obviously not going to say her name.

But that's the reason I was in this area. And then I heard the shots, and of course I ran right in this direction.

But, I mean, there was just a crowd of men whipping another man with belts -- he was bleeding -- in order to grab a stack of candles. There's just a crowd who allowed a little boy to...

VELSHI: Wow. Like you said, Anderson, there's nothing normal there.

All right, Anderson. We'll keep checking in with you. Stay safe in the streets of Port-au-Prince.

As Anderson says, from his perspective in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, "There is nothing normal here."

Tonight, find out more about how you can help Haiti. It's a special two-hour "LARRY KING LIVE" at a special time, 8:00 Eastern tonight, only on CNN.

Well, from lives of drudgery to lives of danger, Haiti's child slaves are now more at risk than ever. More about their plight straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: Their situation was horrible before the earthquake, and now it is that much worse. According to a study last year, there were about 225,000 child slaves in Haiti working as unpaid servants, or Restaveks. The U.N. thinks the number may be as high as 300,000.

Last summer, Dr. Sanjay Gupta looked at the life of a Restavek for an "Impact Your World" report.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For 15-year-old Dina, there is nothing but work. Nothing.

In the slums of Port-au-Prince, Haiti, she spends every day, all day, cleaning, cooking, shopping, carrying buckets of water up an impossibly steep mountain for her owner. That's right, her owner.

If she's too slow or doesn't do her work, she's either beaten with an electrical cord or made to kneel on this sharp cheese grater.

(on camera): Do you get angry?

GUPTA (voice-over): "I get angry," she says, "but what can I say? I can't say anything."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELSHI: Sanjay's piece looked at a group trying to help Dina and kids like her. David Fatherree works with that group, the Jean Cadet Restavek Foundation. He joins me now.

David, thanks for joining me.

First of all, to what degree are these kids, these Restaveks, affected worse than other Haitians right now?

DAVID FATHERREE, JEAN CADET RESTAVEK FOUNDATION: Well, right now, as you know, as that report showed, these children are in serious danger of being subject to trafficking. They were already neglected before the earthquake happened, so as you can imagine, there's no one there, support system, to help them out.

VELSHI: If they are survivors -- and perhaps their owners, some people call them, euphemistically, host families, but their owners have gone. What's like to happen to them? Can they go to the authorities? Can they get their freedom?

FATHERREE: Well, right now that's a great question. I mean, the foundation is taking a stand that we will do everything we can to help them. But we need to identify the right resources, organizations, orphanages, whoever can help us collaborate together to figure out what we can do to meet these immediate needs of these children.

VELSHI: David, is this -- this seems to be accepted, or it seems to happen. It can't possibly be legal.

FATHERREE: Honestly, this is not legal, but it's just the norm there. And what we're trying to do is bring as much awareness to the situation as possible and try to do what we can to help these children.

VELSHI: I was reading somewhere that some of these Restaveks are given over, obviously, for money. Others are given over because their parents might think that they've got better educational opportunities, or they're with a family that is less poor.

Is that true at all?

FATHERREE: Yes, that is true. In most cases, they give their children away thinking that they'll have better access to education or food and shelter. But unfortunately, that promise is usually broken and they are living a life of hard labor, abuse, neglect, and that's extremely unfortunate for them.

VELSHI: I understand about two-thirds of these -- according to the study, two-thirds of them are girls, and they might be subject to sexual abuse as well.

FATHERREE: Correct.

VELSHI: All right. What is the situation geographically? Do you know how they divide up?

Obviously, this quake has really affected urban areas. Are these people largely urban employees? Really, I guess we can't call them employees. They don't get paid. Do they work in the cities? Do they work on the farms in the country?

FATHERREE: Most of our children were located in more urban areas that were living with the host families at the time. The situation, obviously, you know, is grim for them.

VELSHI: You were working with some kids in Haiti, and you were on your way down. In fact, you were going to go down on Friday, prior to the earthquake.

FATHERREE: Correct. Correct.

Our organization was working with around 450 children at the time and 25 schools, trying to integrate them into schools and get them an education. We are sad to report that one of our schools was hit badly. It collapsed, and we believe that 100 of the children in that school that we were working with are dead.

VELSHI: David Fatherree, thanks for joining us and telling us a bit about this even more grim situation for some students -- for some youngsters. You thought it couldn't get worse than what we have seen in Haiti, but there are some people there who are virtually slaves.

David, thank you.

FATHERREE: Thank you. And please let people know that if they want to help, they can go to our Web site, restavekfreedom.org.

VELSHI: All right. And we will connect to that on our Web site. You just need to go to CNN.com/Ali.

We will get that link up on our blog very, very shortly.

Listen, when we come back, we're going to show you pictures of our own Dr. Sanjay Gupta performing surgery on a badly hurt girl who had concrete embedded in her abdomen.

That's when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: You don't often hear the words "aircraft carrier" and "brain surgery" in the same sentence, but it's one of the big headlines out of Haiti. A 12-year-old girl, badly hurt, undergoes surgery on board the USS Carl Vinson with CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta in the lead.

Our correspondent Brian Todd is on the Vinson as well, just off Port-au-Prince, and he joins me by phone with an update.

Brian, what's the situation?

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ali, Dr. Gupta was able to perform that surgery. It was completed.

The little girl, we are told, the prognosis is very good. She's going to be observed though for about 48 hours while they ensure that the surgery was successful.

They successfully removed a second piece of concrete from her head. Initially, when she was medevaced in on Saturday night, there was another piece of concrete embedded in her skull. She had a pretty serious skull fracture.

That piece of concrete was removed, but there were signs of infection developing. And the general surgeon on board wasn't certain how to proceed from there, so they contacted Sanjay.

It was interesting. In that surgery, we actually saw Dr. Gupta (INAUDIBLE) some of the abandoned patients at the Haitian hospital there, and recognized that he was about the only neurosurgeon within any decent range of this area. So she asked him to come on board. And it looks like that operation was successful.

VELSHI: What is the role of the USS Carl Vinson right now? Why are you on it, Brian?

TODD: It really is a logistical hub, Ali. Everything is coming through this vessel from Guantanamo and then heading out to Port-au- Prince and beyond.

This is basically ground zero for all the relief flights, for medevac flights. We have been embedded with this team since they got here on Friday, riding along with them on a lot of relief flights.

It's been a really nonstop operation and they have been ramping it up little by little each day. I'd say there are at least three dozen flights launched here every day, and it's increasing really by the hour.

VELSHI: What's the biggest roadblock as you've seen it, Brian? We talked to General Honore earlier about some of the roadblocks, the actual roads that people can't get through from the airport. What's the biggest impediment to getting aid and help out to the people who need it the most in Haiti right now?

TODD: Well, a lot of it involves finding a secure landing zone. In our experience with these flights this week, the pilots will go in and have a designated landing zone. And when they get there, either the crowds might be a little too unruly, or the terrain is too hilly, or sometimes there is too much rubble around and the rubble kicks up into the rotors of the choppers. That makes it very, very dangerous.

As far as the security, a lot of the time they can get in. And if the 82nd Airborne division has secured the perimeter, they can land. And we've observed that happening quite often, when they have actually touched down and gotten the aid to the ground when the 82nd is there.

When the 82nd has not been there, sometimes they have had to just drop some aid because the crowds are too unruly. And it really is an unsafe situation with a helicopter landing in those areas. So security is a big concern. And also, just the hilly terrain and the rubble for the choppers is sometimes an impediment.

VELSHI: Brian Todd, thanks for that. And we'll keep in touch with you and find out what's going on, and especially how that aid is getting in there and how the efforts are being coordinated from the USS Carl Vinson off the coast of Port-au-Prince.

Brian Todd.

And tonight, you can find out more about how you can help Haiti. It's a special two-hour "LARRY KING LIVE," at a special time, 8:00 Eastern, tonight only, on CNN.

I'm going to show you that again in a minute, a fireball erupting in the heart of Kabul. It's just one of several explosions that rocked Afghanistan's capital today.

Taliban militants wearing explosive vests launched an attack on the city, killing at least five people and wounding dozens more. We're hearing reports that several attackers are also among the dead.

A serial rapist is on the loose in central Texas, and he's targeting elderly women. Police say the suspect is linked to at least eight sexual assaults. The oldest know victim is 91. The youngest, 65.

Investigators have little information on the suspect. Only a vague description. No sketch, but he reportedly stole an unusual clock from a victim. One clue that hopefully could help track him down.

Well, drive drunk and you're on track to go to jail. Lesson learned for one Pennsylvania woman. Look at that picture.

Police say the woman was under the influence when she somehow drove her SUV onto a train trestle over the weekend and got stuck 60 feet in the air. Everyone is OK. The woman was arrested on suspicion of DUI.

Snow might be the least of their problems. The West Coast bracing for a week of storms.

Our severe weather expert, Chad Myers, is all over that. And they said it wouldn't last. And of course it didn't. On this date in 1996, Lisa Marie Presley, the daughter of an icon, filed for divorce from another icon, Michael Jackson.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: Former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush leading efforts to raise private money for Haitian relief. Over the weekend, they talked about the scenes of devastation and the huge job ahead.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE W. BUSH, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Like most Americans, Laura and I have been following the television coverage from Haiti. Our hearts are broken when we see the scenes of little children struggling without a mom or a dad, or the bodies in the streets, or the physical damage of the earthquake.

WILLIAM JEFFERSON CLINTON, FMR. PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I believe before this earthquake, Haiti had the best chance in my lifetime to escape its history, a history that Hillary and I have shared a tiny part of. I still believe that, but it's going to take a lot of help and a long time.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

VELSHI: You just heard former President Clinton mention the history of Haiti. That history is a grim story of conquest and slavery and poverty and violence. Fareed Zakaria took a look back on his CNN show, "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS".

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

FAREED ZAKARIA, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Everybody surly knows by now that Haiti is the poorest country in the entire western hemisphere, but that's not the whole story. You see, Haiti has been marked by violence, turmoil and tragedy up till the start, until recently when things turned up only to be dashed by this earthquake. And that start informed the tragedies that have befallen this country ever since. So a quick history lesson, one I think is fascinating on its own merits and is essential to understanding Haiti today.

The island that came to be known as Hispaniola was discovered by Europeans when Christopher Columbus landed there in 1492.

Two hundred years later, in 1697, the French gained control of the western third of this island. African slaves growing sugar, coffee and tobacco there became a veritable gold mine for the French.

But then, in 1791, the slaves revolted. It's been called the Vietnam War of its time. A rag tag group of insurgents beating one of the greatest militaries of the age. None other than Napoleon Bonaparte sent tens of thousands of his French troops. They all tried to beat back the rebellion and they all failed. On New Year's Day, 1804, the last defeated French ship left and the slaves declared victory and Haiti, the nation that emerged, is the only nation in the entire world that was founded by slaves.

But the elation from emancipation didn't last long. The nation was very poor, made poorer by the French who demanded a large indemnity for losing the war. The plantation system along with much of the rest of the country had been ravaged by the war. And the vast majority of the population didn't know how to do anything but farm for a master.

Furthermore, the world was wary of this nation of half a million newly freed blacks. The United States, for example, didn't recognize Haiti for the first 58 years of its existence until 1862, a year after the U.S. Civil War began. And that was the officially beginning of what continues to this day to be a difficult relationship.

In 1915, the U.S. sent in a landing force to occupy the island nation. The Haitian president had just been assassinated, the country was in a state of chaos and some say America simply wanted to protect its investments there. Whatever the reasons for coming, the Americans stayed for almost 20 years and it was often a brutal occupation. The Americans, under Franklin D. Roosevelt, withdrew but essentially of their own volition, in 1934.

Haiti remained a troubled and chaotic place. Sixty years later, the Yanks were back. In 1994, under the Clinton administration, the American military went in again. This time they came to restore democracy and two years later, Haiti saw for the first time in its then almost 200-year history, a peaceful transition of power from one democratically elected president to another.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELSHI: Fascinating history by Fareed Zakaria on "FAREED ZAKARIA GPS".

Many Americans have friends and family members in Haiti. With communications iffy, it's hard to make connections, but CNN is trying to help. Josh Levs joins me now from our Missing Persons' Desk with a one story.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: So, as you know, we have been doing all that we can to help people around the world connect with loved ones in Haiti at a time that so many people in Haiti don't have access to basic communication. And I have a story for you now that is poignant and hopeful. Joining me on the phone is Telma Joseph (ph) who was told her cousin was dead and then saw her cousin's photo on CNN.

All right, Telma, I understand you have an update for us now. After seeing this photo on CNN, you have now talked to your cousin for the first time. Tell us about her.

TELMA JOSEPH, (via telephone): Yes, I have great news. My cousin, she just called me actually from a hospital in Santa Domingo called Jimani (ph). She sounds good. She told me she is by herself, she doesn't have anybody. She paused and then she said, Telma, I lost one of my leg. And I started crying and she was like, Telma, Telma, please don't cry. Don't cry, I'm OK.

LEVS: Let me get this -- so she had to have a leg amputated...?

JOSEPH: Yes.

LEVS: ... because of her injuries...?

JOSEPH: Yes.

LEVS: And she's telling you not to cry.

JOSEPH: Yes. She said, Telma, listen to me, don't cry. She's like, where I was, it was the worst thing ever. I didn't think I was going to make it. She's like, all I need you to do for me is to pray. She was the one making me feel better, giving me strength over the phone.

LEVS: And we have your cousin's picture up that we're showing. We have the photo from -- that you saw on "LARRY KING LIVE" which is a photo from the Associated Press and we have a photo you gave us of her. You had submitted this to iReport, which got a lot of people out there looking for her.

She must be in tremendous pain now, your cousin Mertha (ph), having a leg amputated at a time that there's such limited medical supplies. Did she tell you? Was she in pain?

JOSEPH: Yes, she said she's in a lot pain, but knowing her, she's very tough, very strong. She's always been like that. She's like, I'm in a lot of pain. I can't begin to describe it to you, but I don't want anybody crying for me. I want people to pray, not only for me, but for other family members, for other people that are dying right now that are still stuck under the debris. She's like, don't cry, pray for me. Pray. I'll be OK.

I think when the earthquake happened, her and two other people had -- they fell into a hole. But she was the only one that they took out that was alive. (INAUDIBLE) she was buried for three days with two dead bodies.

She told me, pray, not only for me. She said, pray not only for me but the other people that are still stuck, that are still buried underneath, whether they are dead or alive. Pray not only for me but pray for other people. Don't cry. She said, crying is not going to do anything. Just have faith and strength that, you know, everything will be OK.

LEVS: Well, Telma, look it's so good to talk with you. Thank you very much for sharing the story. We'll talk with you again. Thank you, Telma.

JOSEPH: No problem. Thank you.

LEVS: And I want to let all of you know, those of you who are looking for loved ones in Haiti right now, CNN iReport has thousands of photos that have been submitted by people looking for their loved ones. And there are also many photos of people inside Haiti, some of them announcing that they have been found. We encourage you to check out CNN iReport and the link is right there on the main page, CNN.com. You'll see where to go. Looking for loved ones in Haiti.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

VELSHI: All right, Josh.

Here's a reminder, you can help make a difference in Haiti. Go to impact your world -- CNN.com/impact. You can find out there how you can help.

And tonight, find out more about how you can help in Haiti. It's a special two-hour "LARRY KING LIVE" live at a special time, 8:00 Eastern tonight on CNN.

Well, it's not just a holiday, it's a day of service. The nation honors Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

And now a look back in time. The Airbus A-380, the world's largest commercial jet was unveiled on this day in 2005. You may recognize one of the folks who went to take a took a look on one of its earlier flights. That's me, possibly a little thinner than I am right now. I got on the plane. It is really quite remarkable for those of you who haven't had a chance to see it. A double-decker, wide-bodied aircraft. Quieter, needing shorter time to take off and land than anything in its class.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: Today, Americans pause to honor and remember Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. In keeping with Dr. King's legacy, this is first and foremost a day of service. President and Mrs. Obama led by example at a D.C. organization called So Others Might Eat. For 40 years now, the group has served the poorest of the poor in the nation's capital.

Here in Atlanta, Dr. King's sister, Christine King Farris, and nephew, Isaac Newton Farris, Jr., placed a wreath at the gravesite. Martin Luther King Jr. is the first and still the only black American whose birthday is a national holiday. He would have 81 last Friday.

By the way, if you have been wondering about the MLK National Memorial planned for Washington, so have we. Organizers say they have $100 million of the $120 million they need. You can check out the progress and donate at mlkmemorial.org.

Checking top stories now. The man who shot Pope John Paul II in 1981 has been released from prison. John Paul forgave Mehmet Ali Agca. And two years after the attack he remained -- that was two years after the attack that he was forgiven. He remained in prison in his native Turkey for an earlier crime, a 1979 murder. Now he's completed that sentence. Today, he released a rambling statement declaring himself the Christ eternal and proclaiming the world will be destroyed.

Five Americans being held in Pakistan say that they have been tortured. The claim was lodged during a court hearing today. The five Muslim-Americans all from the Washington area were arrested for suspected terrorism last month. Pakistani officials deny mistreating them.

And Massachusetts voters choose a replacement tomorrow for the late Senator Edward Kennedy. Democrat Martha Coakley rolled out a new television ad today featuring President Obama. Even though Massachusetts is heavily democratic state, Coakley is facing a tough challenge from republican Scott Brown. We'll have more on that race after the break.

And tonight, find out more about how you can help Haiti. It's a special, two-hour "LARRY KING LIVE" at a special time, 8:00 Eastern tonight only on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

VELSHI: We're not going to lose sight of the situation in Haiti, but we do have to bring you a major political story from Massachusetts. It's the special election to fill the U.S. Senate seat Ted Kennedy held for almost half a century. The democrat in what is suddenly a nail-biter, Martha Coakley, currently the state attorney- general. Her republican opponent is a state senator named Scott Brown. A win by Brown would mean a 41st republican in the U.S. Senate and that would be a game-changer.

CNN national political correspondent Jessica Yellin joins me live from Boston with the state of the race and the stakes for the country. Jessica, tell me why we care so much about this?

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: OK, Ali, two main reasons.

First of all, you just talked about the math. Forty-one votes would go to the republicans if the republican wins tomorrow. And you know what a that means? It means health care reform could be dead in the water. It means democrats would have to find a new creative different way to pass health care reform. So that would be a huge challenge for democrats and if they lose it, potentially a devastating defeat. That's one reason.

Another reason is because it potentially says a lot about where democrats stand right now in the eyes of voters. The fact that this seat which was held by Ted Kennedy, the liberal lion as he was called for so many years, could go to a republican says that in many ways voters right now are feeling dissatisfied with incumbents. The polls show in the state they are dissatisfied with the president. And the democrats will dispute that, but plenty of polls show it.

And there's a general sense that this would be so dispiriting and upsetting to the democrats in general, that it could spell significant losses in the mid-term elections later this year and maybe even force the Obama administration to change their agenda a little bit in the coming months, Ali. It really would have a significant ripple effect.

VELSHI: I saw polling this morning. This is literally a dead heat at this point.

YELLIN: It's -- even the latest poll show that is the republican has pulled ahead. It's just -- for people here, it's astonishing. People think of that Senate seat -- it's even been called "the Kennedy seat." And the idea that it would go to a republican is astounding to many people who have lived in the state for decades. So it will be a nail-biter.

VELSHI: Jessica, is this about -- does this have anything to do with Coakley or is it all about the national politics right now?

YELLIN: You know, it really depends on who you ask. So republicans want to say this is all about health care reform. That this is voter's way of saying they don't want health care reform to pass. So that's what a lot of republicans are saying.

Nationally, democrats who are supportive of Obama nationally say this is really not about Obama. It's about Martha Coakley and the fact that she's run a very sloppy campaign, she's made a lot of gaffes and she's not very warm, approachable, doesn't feel like she's one of the people.

And then you talk to democrats here and they say, look, the president has not made this a very good environment for us. The economy is tough, people are worried about big government and all of that's combining to make it a bad environment for a democrat to run.

A little bit is true in all three of those scenarios.

VELSHI: In reality, though, it's not going to be good for the White House if they lose this one. I understand Martha Coakley has released an ad now highlighting the president. So they are trying to bring the president into this and I guess gain some popularity that way?

YELLIN: Absolutely. Well, what they're trying to do is -- she doesn't even have -- her support among democrats is not where it should be or could be. So they're trying to pump up the turnout by democrats tomorrow by bringing the president yesterday, putting out an ad with him. And the contrarian logic now is that because there's so much press around the fact that Coakley is down in the polls, more democrats are going to want to come out and bring her back up. And that's what democrats are counting on, the polls aren't showing it yet, Ali. We're going to be watching them closely.

VELSHI: We will be watching it very, very closely. And of course, this happens tomorrow. We'll be on top of it then as well. Jessica Yellin in Boston, Massachusetts on this very interesting race.

All right, we've heard a lot about tweets and texts in the aftermath of the Haiti quake, but the Internet has been integral too in getting out the message and bringing money for disaster relief. I'll talk to Facebook's Randi Zuckerberg about it next.

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VELSHI: Over the past week the World Wide Web has been living up to its name in the best possible way, reaching as many people as possible. Less than 48 hours after the quake, Facebook launched a new global disaster relief page, which you are looking at here. Randi Zuckerberg is the marketing director at Facebook, she joins me from L.A. with more about this.

Randi, thanks for joining us.

RANDI ZUCKERBERG, MARKETING DIRECTOR, FACEBOOK.COM: Thanks, Ali.

You know, it's interesting how Facebook and social media sites have really been able to provide a lifeline for people to stay connected to loved ones in Haiti during this time.

VELSHI: Yes. You're doing what we are trying to do here with a special tonight at CNN with our "IMPACT YOUR WORLD." But you're going out there and trying to create an environment where people can learn more about Haiti with the hopes that -- what? -- if they learn more they will figure out how best to help or how to donate money?

ZUCKERBERG: That's right. In fact, there hundreds of different nonprofits and people who are using Facebook as a means to convey information. And so, we think we have a huge responsibility to help aggregate all of that information and to bring that to Facebook in order to help people understand what's accurate, what they can do to best help.

VELSHI: So I'm looking at the page. You guys set this up and within 48 hours of the earthquake you have now got how many members of -- how many fans of this page?

ZUCKERBERG: We have about 115,000 members of the page. It's growing by thousands every hour. We launched the page last week, like you said, within 48 hours of hearing. And we really hope this is a collaborative effort between nonprofits, governments, organizations around the world that are all helping.

VELSHI: What do you find -- I mean, you and I have talked about this before during Iran, during the elections in Iran and the aftermath. Very different situation but there is a very interesting role for social media in these types of large-scale events where there are communication breakdowns. Give me some sense of what you have seen as the trend with social media in helping people out when they need to get a message to the outside world. ZUCKERBERG: One of the most interesting things I've seen is entire relief organizations are conducting the way that they communicate with teams on the ground in Haiti through Facebook Chat. So basically the traditional lines of communication are not available right now. So they are using Facebook Chat to communicate with their relief organizations on the ground.

VELSHI: And then, there are other companies you were talking about. Tell me more about this. Companies that are using Facebook and its connection to Haiti relief to raise money. I know there was a company in Pittsburgh, a chocolate maker and a milk shake factory, that donated 100 percent of sales on Saturday.

ZUCKERBERG: The Milkshake Company in Pittsburg. So we're seeing organizations from tiny mom-and-pop shops in Pittsburgh to the Golden Globes last night where celebrities, through Facebook, were encouraging their fans to help with the support. Everything from big and small, we're seeing them using their Facebook pages as a way to communicate directly with their fans.

VELSHI: One of the effective things, we have seen this on Twitter, we're seeing it on Facebook as well, is the sense that people are reposting or posting stories so that others who are involved and want to know more about it can get as much access to information as possible. Are you saying that with people posting stories about Haiti, perhaps nothing to do with them, but just trying to get the word out?

ZUCKERBERG: We're definitely seeing a lot that. I think there's more of a need for expert information now than ever before. But it's really powerful when your friends can provide that filter of what you should be focusing on and what's the information that can be most impactful.

VELSHI: All right. What are you finding in terms of -- are people now looking to Facebook to say, are these resources out there? In other words, who sets these things up? When you have a disaster relief page that we're looking at here, is that something that's done by these third parties that make applications for Facebook or does that tend to come from you folks?

ZUCKERBERG: We, actually, at Facebook headquarters, we set up the global disaster relief page, but we're hoping that this is going to be a really collaborative initiative with a lot of partners. Any nonprofits, any governments, anyone who is helping out with this initiative in a big way, we want them to be a part a of co-providing content on that page with us.

VELSHI: Very good. Randi Zuckerberg is the marketing director at Facebook, joining me now from L.A. Randi, thanks for all the good work that you're doing out there at Facebook and for everybody else who is trying to get some help and some service down to Haiti.

ZUCKERBERG: Thanks, Ali.

VELSHI: Tonight, by the way, this is our effort to do this, find out more about how you can help Haiti. It's a special two-hour "LARRY KING LIVE" at a special time, 8:00 Eastern tonight only on CNN. We're going to be focusing on how you can help in Haiti.

All right, "RICK'S LIST" is coming up at the top of the hour for the first time ever. Rick Sanchez adds an hour to his show, "RICK'S LIST" starts at 3:00 and runs to 5:00 on CNN starting today right here on CNN.

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VELSHI: The story becomes more and more amazing with every hour in Haiti. Anderson will be on with that at 10:00, but at 8:00 we have got that special "LARRY KING."

But at 3:00 today, 3:00 Eastern, for the first time ever you will see "RICK'S LIST." Rick Sanchez on from 3:00 to 5:00. He joins me right now. He's getting ready for "RICK'S LIST."

Rick, congratulations.

RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: You, too.

VELSHI: First night. Thank you, sir. It will be good working with you every day.

SANCHEZ: Speaking of Larry King, I think Larry is going to calling us in a little while. He's going to be getting in on this as well. He has a hell of a show stacked up for tonight.

VELSHI: Well it's answering a question that a lot of people have been giving -- you must be getting them, we're getting them -- how do I help? What do I do? People ready to get on a plane and try and get close to Haiti. What exactly they are supposed to do.

SANCHEZ: And you know what? Larry and I are both from Miami. We both grew up there, we both basically cut our teeth there. And let me tell you something, the Haitian community in south Florida and all over the place, you know from a lot in the New York as well, it's a huge community there, they are probably some of the most noble people in the United States -- hard-working, religious, family-oriented. I mean, these are really good people. That's why -- we have made a promise to stay on top of the story, we're not going to let it go.

But let me tell you something else, my friend. Let me tell you what else is going on right now, what happens if Brown wins in Massachusetts?

VELSHI: That's a good question, 41 republicans.

SANCHEZ: You're Barack Obama and you have a health care plan you have to pass. Do you run back to Washington? Do you try to get this thing passed before they seat Brown? We're talking reality here.

VELSHI: That's why this isn't just a Massachusetts election. This is important to everybody in the country. SANCHEZ: Bingo, you're absolutely right. And now let's look at it the other way, consider this -- what happens if it goes the other way but Brown wins?

VELSHI: Yes.

SANCHEZ: Let's give Brown a victory here.

VELSHI: Brown is a republican.

SANCHEZ: Brown is a republican. He wins, he wants to stop the democrats and Barack Obama from getting health care passed. Does he get on a plane the next day, go to Washington and say, I demand you seat me right now?

VELSHI: This is going to be serious. It's remarkable in a place where Ted Kennedy held a seat for 46 years, a democratic state, that this is even a discussion.

SANCHEZ: Well and the reason this is a discussion, we're going to have both camps represented here during this hour. I'm going to interview both Coakley's side and Brown's side, we're going to find out what maybe the answers are to these questions. I don't know, but let's put it to them.

VELSHI: Latest CNN Opinion Research Polling puts Brown just a little bit ahead but still within the margin of error. So for most purposes, it's a dead heat.

Rick, "RICK'S LIST".