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American Morning
Obama Appears on "The Daily Show"; Suspects Plans D.C. Metro Terror Plot; Countdown to Midterm Elections; Angle Thanks Behar; "I Have Fear... But This is Natural; The "Swing Race"; Fury Over "Fatties" Blog; Travel Forecast
Aired October 28, 2010 - 06:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning to you. Oh, well, one, two, three.
KIRAN CHETRY, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning.
ROBERTS: Good morning to you all. What do we have? It's Thursday, the 28th. Yes, of course, it's the 28th. The little voice in my head says it's the 28th of October. Yes, it's the 28th of October which means it's just three days away from Halloween now. Looking forward to that. And thanks for joining us on AMERICAN MORNING. I'm John Roberts.
CHETRY: I'm Kiran Chetry. Five days away from Election Day as well.
ROBERTS: Yes.
CHETRY: And we have a lot to talk about this morning, so let's gets started.
A television first. President Obama on "The Daily Show," one-on-one with Comedy Central's Jon Stewart. The White House wanting to reach young voters to reel in core Democrats. So how did it go? We're live from the White House with the early reviews ahead.
ROBERTS: A chilling plot to blow up Washington, D.C. area subway stations and kill as many people as possible. Investigators say the suspect thought he was part of an Al Qaeda-planned attack but he was working with the FBI instead. A live report from homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve just ahead.
CHETRY: Also, extreme weather battering the Mid-Atlantic now. This monster storm we've been talking about for days that did so much damage in the Midwest. Well, it's still causing major problems. Reports of tornadoes touching down in Richmond, Virginia overnight. There you see the toppled trees. Rob Marciano tracking all of it from the extreme weather center for us this morning.
ROBERTS: Up first, though, the president taking unprecedented steps to stave off a Republican avalanche. Five days and counting until the midterm elections and the stakes could not be higher. That's why we have assembled "The Best Political Team on Television" this morning bringing you the kind of coverage that you need to make your vote count. CHETRY: And it's no joke, a sitting president appearing on Comedy Central last night. It never happened before. But Barack Obama, the leader of the free world going one-on-one with "The Daily Show"'s Jon Stewart, who some called the leader of America's disenchanted left. Real fireworks last night, but a measured Q and A, and a light moment or two.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We have passed historic health care reform, historic financial regulatory reform. We have done things that some folks don't even know about.
JON STEWART, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART": What have you done that we don't know about?
OBAMA: Well --
(LAUGHTER)
STEWART: Are you planning a surprise party for us?
(LAUGHTER)
Filled with jobs and health care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CHETRY: Ed Henry's live at the White House this morning. So what's the buzz there on the president's performance on "The Daily Show," Ed?
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, they feel pretty good, Kiran. I mean, when you think back to Bill Clinton playing the saxophone on Arsenio Hall, this is sort of the natural evolution in politics that presidents are going to continue to use these unconventional formats. This president, in particular, has been willing to do that. We've seen him on "The View," for example, trying to reach out to female voters. This time, he was reaching out to younger voters and using the Jon Stewart show as sort of a vehicle to reach out to people who may have voted for him in 2008 but feel disillusioned now.
And, in fact, Jon Stewart on "The Daily Show" did not give him a free pass. He was very pressing the president on the notion that maybe change has not come as fast as the president promised. The president gave as good as he got saying, look, it's still yes, we can but it's going to take some time. And he really pushed back and tried to show where he's had success on issues like health care.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JON STEWART, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART": You ran with such, if I may, audacity. So much of what you said was great leaders lead in a time of opportunity.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Right. STEWART: We're the ones we're looking for. Yet legislatively, it has felt timid at times. That I'm not even sure at times what you want out of a health care bill.
OBAMA: And this is -- Jon, I love your show but -- but -- but this is something where, you know, I have a profound disagreement with you.
STEWART: Right.
OBAMA: And I don't want to lump you in with a lot of other pundits. But this notion --
STEWART: You may.
OBAMA: No, no. Look, this notion that health care was timid, you've got 30 million people who are going to get health insurance as a consequence of this.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: Now Jon Stewart also pressed him on the notion maybe his economic team was too close to Wall Street. The president pushed back perhaps, unfortunately, with the phrase that Larry Summers was doing a heck of a job, ala Brownie, after Katrina in the Bush administration. Jon Stewart said maybe that's not the best phrase. But I think to borrow another phrase from the Bush administration, they feel here at the White House it was mission accomplished in terms of reaching out to the young voters, may have come out for the first time in 2008 for then Senator Obama, maybe thinking about sitting on the sidelines of 2010. This White House wants to make sure they can get as many of them to the polls as possible to say look, give us at least another two years -- John and Kiran.
CHETRY: You just used another infamous phrase as well, mission accomplished.
HENRY: Exactly.
CHETRY: It was also a surreal moment, Ed, to hear Jon Stewart call the president "dude"?
HENRY: Yes. I mean, on one hand, you know, there are people who think that's sort of unpresidential. The president got a little bit of flak when he appeared on "The View," for example, as well. But on the other hand, I think for a White House that has heard a lot of criticism that maybe this president doesn't emote (ph) enough, doesn't connect with middle class voters, then he's sort of high-minded and more academic than sort of visceral, going on with Jon Stewart, you know, hearing the phrase "dude," that can help him with maybe with average voters to say, look, he may be president, but he's also a human being.
CHETRY: Ed Henry this morning for us. Thanks so much.
HENRY: Thank you. CHETRY: A reminder as well. AMERICAN MORNING will be on an hour early next Monday and Tuesday. We start at 5:00 a.m. Eastern Time ahead of the elections and 3:00 a.m. the morning after Election Day.
ROBERTS: Five minutes after the hour. And on the CNN security watch this morning, he thought that he was working for Al Qaeda in a plot to blow up train stations in the Washington, D.C. metro system at the height of rush hour. It turns out he was actually helping undercover FBI agents. The suspect, the Pakistani American from Virginia is in custody this morning. Homeland security correspondent Jeanne Meserve following developments and she is live in Washington.
What was this one all about, Jeanne?
JEANNE MESERVE, CNN HOMELAND SECURITY CORRESPONDENT: Well, John, this highlights two very troubling trends, the targeting of mass transit and plotting by domestic terrorists.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MESERVE (voice-over): The intended target, Washington's metro system which carries 750,000 people every day. The government alleges that 34-year-old Farooq Ahmed (ph), a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Pakistan, wanted to kill as many military people as possible and cased four metro stations near the Pentagon. He did his alleged plotting with people he believed were affiliated with Al Qaeda, but they were really working for the government. As of now, officials say they have no indication that he was working with other extremists overseas or here in the U.S.
THOMAS FUENTES, CNN CONTRIBUTOR, FMR. FBI ASST. DIRECTOR: The fact that he was arrested and the case made public is a strong indication that it's not jeopardizing any other active investigation.
MESERVE: The indictment says Ahmed provided video and sketches of the four metro stations and suggested an attack during afternoon rush hour to maximize casualties.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It's definitely scary for me to think that something could have happened.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Because there's really no things in place to keep someone from actually just coming into the system and blowing up the metro.
MESERVE: The investigation is continuing. Police searched Ahmed's Ashburn, Virginia townhouse where he lived quietly, neighbors said, with his wife and young son.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You know, you don't expect people that are citizens to do thing like that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MESERVE: But U.S. officials have been sounding the alarm over domestic terrorism. More than 20 Americans have been charged with serious terror violations this year. But officials insist in this instance, the public was never in any danger -- John, Kiran.
ROBERTS: Jeanne Meserve for us this morning from Washington. Jeanne, thanks.
CHETRY: Also, new this morning, the Pentagon says there will be extra security at this weekend's Marine Corps marathon after a string of shots were fired at U.S. military buildings, including the Pentagon. Sunday's marathon is one of the world's largest. Thirty thousand runners are expected to participate.
ROBERTS: Indonesia's most active volcano remains in danger today. Officials are scrambling to evacuate tens of thousands of people after Mt. Merapi erupted at least three times on Tuesday. More than 30 people have been killed so far. Experts say no lava dome has yet formed on the top, though they are fearing a massive explosion.
And in western Sumatra, more than 300 people were killed after a 7.7 earthquake triggered a tsunami three days ago. Hundreds more people are still missing. Searchers are combing the islands off of the west coast of Sumatra to try to find out if there are more victims or if there survivors maybe who might not be accounted for.
CHETRY: Such devastation.
ROBERTS: Yes, terrible. The wave was about 10 feet high when it came in.
CHETRY: Well, it's eight minutes past the hour right now. It's time for us to get a check of the weather headlines this morning. We have our share of severe weather as well in this country.
Hey, Rob?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Good morning, guys.
Yes, the one-two punch of that monster storm that rolled across the Midwest yesterday afternoon across the Mid-Atlantic, where thunderstorms produced some tornadoes, 14 reports of them from North Carolina into through Virginia.
Take a look at some of this video coming into us from Virginia. Some of this damage certainly looks like it could be a tornado with trees snapped like toothpicks there. And near Richmond, Virginia, they'll be going out there to survey this, and likely will find it to be a tornado yesterday afternoon. Very, very active across parts, that part.
It will be quieter today. Thankfully, after two days of this stuff, this front is moving offshore. But more importantly, we're looking -- we didn't see any fatalities, at least with the thunderstorm winds across the mid-Atlantic and Deep South. Amazing.
This stuff is moving, pushing slowly to the south. Still kind of rainy with thunderstorms of a more tranquil variety across Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia.
Cooler, drier air moving in place just in time for Halloween weekend. More details coming up in about 30 minutes -- John and Kiran.
ROBERTS: And what are we looking at in terms of temperature for Halloween in the northeast? Do we know?
MARCIANO: Well, depends where you live. And depending on how late your children trick or treat. You may have to --
CHETRY: Well, he wants to know about his own costume, whether or not he should be shirtless again this year or it's going to be just too cold.
MARCIANO: Well, yes. Maybe some thermals and a leotard. That will be a good idea.
ROBERTS: Rob, thank you. We'll see you again very soon with the travel forecast.
MARCIANO: All right.
ROBERTS: All right.
Well, diplomacy can't beat back the bedbugs. Another New York City landmark infested by bedbugs. Wait until you hear where they are this time.
CHETRY: Yes. Well, hopefully we'll tell you not to be eating your cereal at that time we talk about that it's pretty creepy.
Also ahead, we're going to be joined by John Avlon, our independent analyst, contributor with "The Daily Beast." He talks about just how vital independents are going to be in five days when they go to the polls.
Ten minutes after the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Twelve minutes past the hour right now. Five days to go until the midterm elections. Republicans are poised to make big gains, especially in the House and to alter the congressional landscape.
ROBERTS: Any GOP success will likely be fueled by independent voters who two years ago help elect President Obama.
Joining us now is John Avlon, CNN contributor and columnist for TheDailyBeast.com. Great to see you.
JOHN AVLON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Good morning, guys.
ROBERTS: So recent polls are showing nationally independents are favoring Republicans by 14 points. You break it down by state level. Nevada is a good one to look at.
Here's a poll. Sharron Angle leads Harry Reid 53-38 among independents. The break in for Rand Paul in Kentucky, Mark Kirk in Illinois, Roy Blunt in Missouri. Michigan it's all about independents.
AVLON: It absolutely is.
ROBERTS: Why are they going with Republicans?
AVLON: Well, they've been going Republicans for over a year now. I mean, independents who voted for President Obama by eight points, who voted for Democrats by 17 points in 2006, begin to swing against Democrats after the stimulus and after health care. There is only six percent approval for the health care legislation among independents. So it's part of a massive wave that is going to push Republicans into office.
CHETRY: That's interesting. You mentioned health care, but there are a couple of other issue polls about how independents feel about it.
AVLON: Yes.
CHETRY: This is from "Politico." Let's take a look. As you said, 62 percent of independents not happy with the Democrats' health care plan. Sixty-six percent say they don't believe the recovery legislation is working. We're talking in some ways about the stimulus. And then 69 percent say they have less faith in government than they did before President Obama was elected. It's a startling turn less than 24 months after. As you said, they put the president in the White House.
AVLON: Absolutely. And to some extent, you are seeing this anger at the status quo, anger at the establishment, that is a function of elections in recession. But I would also argue that independents have actually been relatively consistent, surprisingly so, beneath these numbers. Independents tend to like divided government because they believe that will create checks and balances and stop any one party from ideological overreach. And they tend to be deficit hawks. And certainly with the explosion of deficit and the debt, that's something that's got a lot of independent voters angry. So there's a consistent message there. But the pendulum swing of American politics is accelerating every cycle at this point and that has a destabilizing effect.
ROBERTS: More people identify themselves as either independent or non-declared --
AVLON: Yes.
ROBERTS: -- than ever before. Fifty percent of voters aged 18 to 29 are independents. Why are they fleeing the target (ph) system?
AVLON: This is one of the most important things happening in American politics, happening right under the nose of the two parties. Look, more and more Americans are declaring their independence from the two parties because the two parties are more polarized than ever before, and that's a significant dynamic.
You look at young voters in particular. You just pointed out, look, we're a generation that's grown up with a multiple (INAUDIBLE) choice in every area of our lives, and yet, politics, we're being told we have to choose between Brand A or Brand B.
CHETRY: A or B. Right.
AVLON: And it doesn't fit the way we live, it doesn't fit the way we think, especially if you're fiscally conservative but socially liberal --
CHETRY: Right.
AVLON: -- like so many folks (INAUDIBLE).
CHETRY: So that's the - that's the question, though, because if you are that way, are these Republican candidates, like Sharron Angle in Nevada, like Ken Buck out of Colorado, like Christine O'Donnell in Delaware, are the - is this who you're going to go to the polls and vote for or are you going to sit it out?
AVLON: Well, definitely not O'Donnell. But I think you are seeing here the - the anger at the establishment is overriding other factors.
In another election year, some of these candidates would be really kryptonite to independent voters because of their social issues. But this is not an election that's primarily about social issues, it's about economic issues. And so, that difference that would normally irritate independents is relatively submerged.
So you are seeing a decisive break like, look, I mean, independents are what - in - in one case at Connecticut, they're backing the Democrat over - over the Republican.
But they're providing the swing. That's the reality of American politics. The way independents go, who wins an election.
ROBERTS: So I read one analysis that suggested that independents are backing Republicans this year for the same reasons they backed President Obama in 2008. They're looking for economic security. But - but in - in the real world, are they likely to get more economic security by voting Republicans into the House?
AVLON: Well, this raises a fascinating question also. Are you looking for government to provide jobs for you or not? Because a lot of it's anger at the, you know, alleged big government spending, which is supposed to create - you know, stimulus spending to create jobs, but a great deal of skepticism about whether the stimulus has worked.
I think that's why it's generally a barometer of economic anger, frustration, uncertainty, and - and that is something that the government alone can't control. What we always see, when - when voters are frustrated about the economy, angry voters turn out to the polls, especially in midterms, which tend to be low turnout, high intensity elections, not necessarily representative of the electorate at large.
And Republicans need to be cautious here, too, because there's not a lot of love for them. Only by comparison to the Democratic establishment are they doing well. ROBERTS: (INAUDIBLE).
CHETRY: What did you think about the president's appearance on "The Daily Show" with Jon Stewart? Is that something that's going to help energize some of those younger, maybe more independent voters?
AVLON: Well, that - that's the hope. And he goes out and says, look, this is important. You need to show out. You have responsibility.
You know, there is - the president is doing these targeted media hits in order to inspire different parts of his base. I think "The Daily Show" does that, and we'll see this weekend with the "Restore Sanity" rally if - if that creates a - a sense of - of optimism and - and obligation.
CHETRY: Yes. Three hundred thousand people on the Facebook page say they're going.
AVLON: We'll see.
ROBERTS: Yes. Some interesting things heading up to Election Day.
John, thanks. Good to see you this morning.
CHETRY: Thanks, John.
Well, still ahead, Joy Behar goes off on Nevada Senate candidate Sharron Angle. Sharron Angle wastes no time responding, and then, of course, Joy responds. It's the she said/she said ahead.
Eighteen minutes past the hour.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Twenty-two minutes past the hour right now.
It's hard to improve upon something as - as basic as toilet paper, but one company is doing just that. Kimberly Clark, getting rid of the cardboard tube with its new Scott Naturals tube-free toilet paper, saying it's the right thing to do for the environment.
ROBERTS: The tubes don't break down? Or -
CHETRY: Well, I guess they do. But if you're not using in - the cardboard in the first place, thinking about how much we use toilet paper, maybe it will make a dent.
If it works - they're trying it out in the northeast first. If it works, they'll go on sale nationwide.
ROBERTS: Well, and a - and a good idea, maybe, for people who don't have the tube-free toilet paper, for the meantime, would be put the tube into recycling, right?
CHETRY: Yes.
ROBERTS: There you go.
Talking about toilet papers, 22 minutes after 6:00.
Ron Artest has come a long way from 2004. You may recall the night in Detroit, well, Artest just lost it, jumping into the stands, punched out a fan during an ugly brawl that started out in the court and then spilled over to the audience. He was suspended for 73 games, losing about $6 million in salary.
Well, Artest, now playing for the L.A. Lakers, is raffling off his new NBA championship ring. He's raffling it off for charity.
He was showing it off last night to our Larry King. The proceeds are going to help fund mental health services for young people who can't afford the counseling. Artest says a psychologist helped turn his life around.
CHETRY: Good for him.
Well, also - this is a good one. It's just the - the gift that keeps on giving, I guess, for daytime TV. Nevada's Republican candidate - Senate candidate, Sharron Angle, getting back at Joy Behar after some comments she made about Sharron Angle on "The View" Tuesday when Behar really let loose.
Here's a look.
The topic of conversation, a controversial ad by Angle's campaign, attacking her opponent Harry Reid's position on illegal immigration.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOY BEHAR, CO-HOST, THE VIEW: Let me tell you how stupid she is. Twenty-five percent of the voters in Nevada are Hispanic. Eighty percent of them are Mexican. This is a moron on top of being evil.
I'd like to see her do this ad in the South Bronx. Come here, bitch. Come to New York and do it.
CHETRY (voice-over): Well, then the ladies reconvened yesterday. Behar said that she received a gift from Angle, along with a thank you note. Hopefully, we'll beep it out this time.
BEHAR: So, this morning, I get these flowers from Sharron Angle. I mean, I look in my - my - it's a brazier (ph) moment. And it says, "Joy, raised $150,000 online yesterday. Thanks for your help. Sincerely, Sharron Angle."
BARBARA WALTERS, CO-HOST, THE VIEW: Well, she has a sense of humor.
BEHAR: She had - no, I know it's a sense of humor, but I'd like to point out that those flowers were picked by illegal immigrants, and they're not voting for you [bleep].
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: Wow. It's getting heated. Oh, my goodness.
Well, she's only 20 years old, still in college, and she has never fired a gun. We told you about here last week. She's the new police chief in a small Mexico town in the frontlines of the drug war.
Up next, Kaj Larsen talks with this young crime fighter. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
CHETRY: Twenty-seven minutes past the hour right now. Your top story's just three minutes away.
First, though, an "A.M. Original", something you'll see only on AMERICAN MORNING. Policing the communities in the heart of Mexico's drug war truly is one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. But there is a new sheriff in town. We first told you about her last week, a 20-year-old woman still in college.
We sent our Kaj Larsen to Mexico to meet the women with the job that literally no one else wanted. He joins us live from Los Angeles this morning with more. This is really an amazing story. Why did she want this job?
KAJ LARSEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kiran, she basically said that she wanted this job for her family and for the other residents of the town. So as I crossed the border into Northern Mexico in the state of Chihuahua, I found a story that kind of defied my expectations of how the drug war against the cartels is being fought.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
LARSEN (on camera): We're right at 60 miles south of El Paso, Texas, into Mexico, into the Juarez Valley, which is sometimes known by its more sinister moniker, the Valley of Death.
MARISOL VALLES GARCIA, POLICE CHIEF, PRAXEDIS GUERRERO, MEXICO: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE).
LARSEN (voice-over): Meet Marisol Valles Garcia, a 20-year-old university student and mother of a 7 month old.
LARSEN (on camera): Do you know how to shoot a gun?
GARCIA: No.
LARSEN: Have you ever shot a gun?
GARCIA: No.
LARSEN (voice-over): Marisol is the newest chief of police in one of the most violent places in the world.
LARSEN (on camera): What does your job entail? What do you - what do you do in your job as police chief?
GARCIA (through translator): We divide the town into nine different parts so the police officers go around town.
LARSEN (voice-over): Thirteen officers, nine of them women, in this town of about 8,000. It's been without a police chief for almost 18 months. Why? Because no one else would take the job.
LARSEN (on camera): Are you afraid of the drug traffickers? Are you afraid of the drug cartels (ph)?
GARCIA (through translator): I have fear. I'm afraid for my security, but this is natural for the chief of police.
LARSEN (voice-over): That may be true, but this place is anything but natural.
LARSEN (on camera): Just to give you an idea of how acutely dangerous this job that Chief Valles Garcia has is, the last police chief, her predecessor, they found his head in a box placed right here outside the station. It happened about a year ago.
GARCIA (through translator): This is the weapons bank. We're going to get some new weapons. But right now, we don't have many. We have two pistols.
LARSEN: This is their one police vehicle and you can see there's a bunch of bullet holes just in - in their vehicle alone. Small caliber bullet holes right here, right here, right here.
LARSEN (voice-over): Even the entrance to the police station which Chief Valles Garcia walks through every day was shot up.
LARSEN (on camera): You work underneath a photograph of the man who was killed by the cartels. That must be on her mind.
GARCIA (through translator): Yes, I'm afraid, but we're very focused on prevention.
LARSEN: The Mexican Army has been fighting the cartels with force. Chief Valles Garcia is conducting a counterinsurgency campaign. She's trying to win hearts and minds, but still the threats against her are astronomical.
GARCIA (through translator): At the beginning, I didn't think about the risk of becoming a police chief, but I wanted the job because of my young son. It's part of my dream to establish the calm and create the peace. I don't care about my age. I care more about what's in my heart. That's why I'm doing it.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LARSEN: So, Kiran, in a different town in northern Mexico, we saw an entire police force that was attacked by the cartels quit. So what we saw in this small city in northern Mexico really represents an extraordinary act of courage.
CHETRY: And you have to admire her bravery, but -- I mean, clearly, the cartel still has the upper hand. They don't even have, you know, weapons to fight against them if they need to.
LARSEN: Yes, that's absolutely true, Kiran. But their strategy is much more akin to a classic counterinsurgency strategy. They're using what in military parlance you would call "indirect warfare," going directly to the people and trying to win the hearts and minds as a method for quelling the violence.
CHETRY: Kaj Larsen for us this morning -- great story, thanks very much.
We're crossing the half hour right now -- time for a look at the other top stories.
French unions are calling again for nationwide strikes today and all next week. They're angry with the government for raising the retirement age to 62. A measure has already passed, but it has not yet signed into law. President Nicolas Sarkozy has refused to back down.
ROBERTS: And now, the United Nations has a bedbug problem. Officials say they've been battling bedbugs in the furniture in its New York headquarters for months now. Bedbugs have also turned up at Empire State Building. Department stores like Bloomingdales, the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, Carnegie Hall and, of course, not to be left out, right here at CNN New York.
CHETRY: Lovely.
ROBERTS: Not my office. What about yours?
CHETRY: Not the last time I checked.
(LAUGHTER)
CHETRY: Fingers crossed.
No more free downloads for you. The judge has ordered LimeWire, a music download site, to stop distributing software that allows users to share music files. The judge agreed with recording industry groups that LimeWire willfully enabled copyright infringement. The Web site insists it has been permanently put out of business, saying it hopes to work with the music industry in moving forward.
ROBERTS: Well, as political contests go, the Senate race in Washington state does not exactly qualify as a marquee matchup. It pits incumbent Democrat Patty Murray against Republican challenger Dina Rossi, not exactly a household name. Right now, it's a statistical dead heat. The latest McClatchy-Maris poll has Murray leading by but a single point.
So, why should you care?
Jim Acosta live in Seattle this morning.
And, Jim, I guess the reason why people should care is that this say potential stepping-stone for a Republican-controlled Senate in 2011.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: That's right. If Dino Rossi wins this race over Patty Murray, the Republicans could have that magazine number they need to take control of the Senate.
Now, as you mentioned, this is not the flashiest Senate race in the country. There aren't any Aqua Buddhas or witches lurking about here in Seattle. But what you do have is one of the top Democrats in Washington fighting to hang on to her job in the Senate. And in a deep blue state like Washington, it is another sign of the times for a party in trouble.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(CHANTING)
ACOSTA (voice-over): She came to Congress 18 years ago as a self-described senator in tennis shoes. These days, Patty Murray may mix up her footwear, but she's running for her political life.
(on camera): Have you changed?
SEN. PATTY MURRAY (D), WASHINGTON: I am still the mom that comes home every single weekend from Washington, D.C., to come out to my communities, touch people in my neighborhoods.
ACOSTA (voice-over): But unlike other Democrats, Murray isn't running away from the White House or the party message that it's the Republicans who wrecked the economy.
MURRAY: Us Democrats, we are the fiscally responsible party.
ACOSTA (on camera): Not everybody would agree with that these days. Will you concede that that's case?
MURRAY: I know. I've been there. In 1992, when I was elected the first time with Bill Clinton, we had a deficit that Ross Perot was reminding us all about. It took a Democratic president and Congress to come in and make some very tough choices that got us back on a path of fiscal responsibility.
(CHANTING)
ACOSTA (voice-over): But Republican former state lawmaker Dino Rossi points to Murray's votes for the bailout and the system loss, and he vows he will never accept an earmark pet project in office.
DINO ROSSI (R), WASHINGTON SENATE CANDIDATE: We're witnessing the fundamental redefinition of America and we cannot let that happen.
ACOSTA: But Rossi, who wasn't the Tea Party's first choice in this race, cautions he wouldn't take an ax to the budget to balance it.
(on camera): So, you wouldn't think it's necessary to go that far?
(CROSSTALK)
ROSSI: You really have to go through it line by line by line. I've actually written government budgets before and balance big deficits. So, I know how this works.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NARRATOR: Patty Murray voted for the largest tax increase history.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA (voice-over): Rossi is getting help from this one, running ads like this one showing a senator in sneakers stepping on the backs of voters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NARRATOR: Tell Senator Murray, ouch!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ACOSTA: Democratic protesters have blocked the outside groups at Rossi's campaign events, but this self-described former Democrat still says he's voting Republican.
LEE MARTIN, SMALL BUSINESS OWNER: I've switched to Republican Party. I believe it's a better direction for where we're going. And hopefully, it will increase in business.
ACOSTA: Other voters like Murray's unapologetic love for taxpayer-funded pet projects which is she calls investments. Her earmarks for the state's ferry system under the nickname "the fairy godmother."
(on camera): So you don't mind if she brings home the bacon?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Of course not. That's her job.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: You know, people really should be paying more attention to this race, John and Kiran, because, really, at the heart of this race is a question that is facing the country and this election, that is: is it the government's job to get the economy back on track, or should Washington just get out of the way? Washington, D.C., that is, they'll point out here, in Washington state -- John and Kiran.
ROBERTS: When it comes to deficit and debt, though, nobody is gold here. The Republicans run up huge deficits and added to the debt.
ACOSTA: That's right.
ROBERTS: This administration has added $3 trillion to the debt in the last two years. I mean, how do you -- how do you make a choice when you're a voter?
ACOSTA: That's right. And that's why it's strange to hear Patty Murray talking about the deficit. She walked into a Democratic call center last night and was talking about the deficit. That's not something that we've heard the Democrats talk a whole heck of a lot about. But it shows you how concerned people are about this issue.
And when we asked Dino Rossi yesterday over and over again, where would you cut budget in the budget to rein in the deficit, he really didn't have an answer. He said he really wanted to go through the federal budget line by line and try to find places that perhaps people hadn't thought of to bring that deficit under control.
But it's certainly one of the top issues out here in Washington state, John.
ROBERTS: Yes, certainly. A lot of people care about that. A lot of people worry about that.
Jim Acosta this morning -- Jim, thanks.
CHETRY: Well, still ahead: a blog posting "Marie Claire" magazine online called, "Should Fatties Get a Room?" sparks huge controversy for "Marie Claire." More than 15,000 comments on the blog itself; nearly 30,000 calls and emails, according to the magazine.
Up next: we're going to ask a psychologist why discrimination of overweight people is one of the last acceptable prejudices. Also, what about free speech?
It's 37 minutes past the hour.
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CHETRY: Welcome back. Forty minutes past the hour right now.
There's a big controversy brewing over a writer from "Marie Claire" who made a blog post that set of a massive response. The title of the post "Should Fatties Get a Room (Even on TV)?" And what she was talking about is the new sitcom out, "Mike & Molly," that features two people who are overweight. And she's raging against people who are overweight in the blog posting.
Here's a sample if you haven't read it. She writes, "I'd be grossed out if I had to watch two characters with rolls and rolls of fat kissing each other because I'd be grossed out if I had to watch them doing anything," unquote. She also went to say that it was promoting obesity. She questioned their health. She also said she found it aesthetically displeasing just to watch an overweight person walk across the room.
Well, a lot of people are obviously upset. The magazine says it's received nearly 30,000 responses to the post.
One person who's definitely upset about is Dr. Ramani Durvasula. She's a professor of psychology at Cal State University. She's also a psychologist on the Bravo series, "Thintervention," the weight loss program on that show - on that network. And she's in L.A. this morning.
Thanks for getting up early with us this morning.
DR. RAMANI DURVASULA, PROF. OF PSYCHOLOGY, CAL STATE UNIVERSITY: My pleasure. Thank you.
CHETRY: You talked -- you talked about your reaction. You said you were infuriated and that obesity is the one of the last prejudices that people are allowed to have. Why is it acceptable to knock overweight people?
DURVASULA: Well, it's acceptable because in many ways it's viewed as voluntary, as though a person elected to do this and that it should be easy to fix. So, numerous studies point to the idea that people who are obese are somehow lazier or more slothingly (ph). They're less intelligent. They're less successful.
And it's one of those few states that people are actually allowed to throw out a prejudicial term within ear shot of a person who is struggling with weight issues. So, it remains that last acceptable stereotype that somebody can hold in our society. And the "Marie Claire" piece reiterated that stereotype again.
CHETRY: The argument that -- she also apologized, by the way. She said that she realized that the post was insensitive.
DURVASULA: Yes.
CHETRY: That she didn't want anyone to feel bullied and ashamed, and that she was sorry if she'd added to their unhappiness. She also went on to admit, you know, I have my own body issues because of anorexia and her life-long obsession with being thin.
So, she sort of opened up about her own battles as well. Does that make it better in any way?
DURVASULA: I don't know that it makes it better. I mean, I think it's a brave revelation on her end. I think that much as we should not go after or castigate people who are struggling with obesity, nor should we attack her for having her own struggles with anorexia. I mean, it seems that we're a country that's caught between struggling with weight loss in any number of ways, whether through disordered eating, overeating, any of these issues -- we just can't get this -- we can't get a handle on this and I think we just attack it any way we can.
But I do think obese people, people who are overweight, are much more in the line of fire, and remain in the line of fire more than ever before despite obesity being one of the number one public health crises in the country right now.
CHETRY: Yes. And I understand you had your own personal battle. And you lost, what, 85 pounds.
DURVASULA: Yes.
CHETRY: You would never know it by looking at you.
DURVASULA: I do. Yes.
CHETRY: It's amazing and you're trying to help other people on your show, "Thinspiration (ph)," do the same in a healthy way. But this was interesting. I know this line upset you more.
Kelly in her piece, she said, "I think obesity is something that most people have a ton of control over. It's something they can change, if only they put their minds to it."
I think a lot of people feel that way. Is that inaccurate?
DURVASULA: I think -- I think that's -- I think it's accurate and inaccurate. Can people address this? Yes. What the problem with that statement is, it makes it seem that it's easy, as though obesity takes place in a vacuum, that a person simply goes and eats. There are so many psychological factors that contribute to a person overeating or getting to place of obesity. And it is naive to believe that a person is going to take that weight off easily because they certainly didn't put it on easily.
So, thinking it's a quick fix that you take a walk around the park or stop eating sweets, it's not that simple. There were so many other factors to address. That was certainly my experience. It's the experience of the clients I've worked. It was the experience of the clients on Bravo's "Thintervention."
I mean, I think that this is a universal phenomenon and fattening food is so easily to access in our -- so easy to access to in our society. And add to that, the numerous psychological issues people bring every time they sit down to a table to eat food.
This is not an easy issue to address. And so, to make it seem so simplistic puts the blame squarely on a person who's struggling with weight issues. And if anything, that kind of piece is more likely to shame a person, put them more into the shadows and less likely or less willing to be able to take on the struggle of improving their health by addressing their weight, rather than making it solely about appearance.
CHETRY: Why is it, though, as you said, it's acceptable to have prejudice against people for being obese sort of the last acceptable prejudice to have. But all of these shows, even your show "Thinner Vention," the show "Biggest Losser."
I mean, technically you're saying you matter more or you're somehow better because you've lost a lot of weight. I mean, isn't that also sending the wrong message then?
DURVASULA: I agree. It's a slippery slope and it's fine razor's edge because at the end of the day, what we'd like to do is promote health, not appearance. But appearance is what sort of is the outcome measure. The fact is, I know this has been my experience I get treated differently now that I'm no longer overweight. When I was overweight, I was invisible. I was almost rendered a nonperson. People looked through me.
That might have been how I held myself and somehow as I got my health back, I also took myself more seriously. That was my personal process. Obesity does not necessarily mean a person doesn't self- confidence and self-respect.
Many people who struggle with weight still hold themselves high and can still respect themselves, but I agree, in the United States and most of the world, we associate people who are in good shape, who meet a certain esthetic standard as somehow being better.
Instead of making these shows about becoming thinner and better, it really should be about being healthier and about transforming oneself inside and outside, but we can't see that inside change so we use the outside change as a meter of what's going on inside of these people.
CHETRY: Doctor, great insight on this issue this morning. Thanks so much.
DURVASULA: Thank you so much.
ROBERTS: You know, there was reading a study earlier this week that found, and it would seem like it would be obvious, but controlling your eating and getting some exercise is very effective at losing weight and keeping the weight off, but as she said, it's a difficult process for people to go through, particularly people who are morbidity obese.
CHETRY: It sure is. It sure is and this posting, I mean, some 30,000 comments for "Marie Claire" magazine. Many people upset by this, but it's also bringing the vision of light that again.
ROBERTS: Well, Rob Marciano's got this morning's travel forecast right after the break and it's looking a lot better than it did in the last couple of days. Stay with us, 47 minutes after the hour.
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ROBERTS: All right, we got 10 minutes down to the top of the hour. Let's get a quick check of the morning's weather headlines. Rob Marciano in the Weather Center for us and you could see the remnants of that storm up here over Hudson Bay and Canada. Rob, thankfully, it's gone away?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: It has and it's weakened, but still spinning as you could see from that satellite picture show. It's been a slow-go getting this system into the Pacific northwest and through the rocky mountains exploding over the plains and into southern Ontario, and this front finally moving offshore.
We didn't see a ton of rough weather from New York to Boston, but we certainly did from D.C. down to Richmond and parts of North Carolina damaging storms yesterday afternoon, especially.
Check out some of this video coming into us from Person County. One of many spots in North Carolina and Virginia, they got peppered with not only high winds, but potentially some tornadoes.
We had 14 reports of tornadoes yesterday alone and over about two dozen the day before so quite a storm with a tornado outbreak for October, extremely, extremely rare. Down across the south, we still have the front that kind of hangs its head and not getting offshore all too quickly.
So south of Atlanta still seeing some showers and thunderstorms, none of these are really terribly severe at this point. We don't expect to see a lot of severe weather today. Heat yesterday, we didn't talk about this, this is one of the factors of this strong storm. Outside of the cold front, we'll get temperatures that are unusual, 94 in Houston yesterday, 94 degrees in Monroe, and Louisiana 93 degrees in Mountain Lake, Florida.
Cool and dry air coming in behind this. We're looking at a pretty decent weekend although the northwest and parts of California will see some rainfall today and tonight.
In between that cool and dry air, it will be kind of cool tonight. We've got frost and freeze advisories, temperatures will be in the 30s from St. Louis as far south of Northern Texas just north of Dallas.
So it will be a little on the chilly side there. So, it looks like we're driving out, temperatures will be, John, since you asked probably in the lower 40s for trick or treat time. Both Saturday and Sunday night across the northeast.
ROBERTS: All right, so put your woollies on if you're going out?
MARCIANO: Right, I think so.
ROBERTS: Good information, thanks.
MARCIANO: All right, guys.
CHETRY: This morning's top stories just a couple of minutes away including campaigning on Comedy Central. President Obama going one- on-one with the daily shows of Jon Stewart, will it rally young voters?
ROBERTS: An arrest at an alleged bomb plot, the bomb metro stations in the nation's capital, but was the public ever really endanger. We're live with details.
CHETRY: A diver versus an eight foot 300-pound shark. The deep sea struggle caught on tape. Those stories and more at the top of the hour.
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(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PETER KING, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED WRITER: I'm Peter King. I work for "Sports Illustrated" NBC Sports covering the National Football League. I also write a column for si.com called "Monday Morning Quarterback."
I'm probably on the road about 120 to 140 days a year. In this job, information is power. I have to have my DSL Verizon card because you don't have wireless everywhere you go. I've got to have my Blackberry. Those are the things in job today that you really need.
As often as I can I will get to a hotel that is within walking distance of what it is I'm covering. I try to avoid the use of rental cars or cabs.
I always pack for long trips very lightly, and I do my own laundry on the road. I will pack in a small suitcase and I'll be gone for 17 days, and I'll do my laundry four times. My name is Peter King, and I'm a road warrior.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ROBERTS: And we have got about 3 minutes now to the top of the hour. Stay with us. The top stories are coming your way right after the break.
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