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Presidential News Conference; Interview With Rep. Ron Paul of Texas; Iran's Lawmakers Demand Deaths; Talk Back; The Help Desk; Choosing Models For the Catwalk

Aired February 15, 2011 - 12:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: You've been watching President Obama there holding his news conference, the first solo news conference of the year there. We were discussing this. It was a rather -- a news conference that lacked a lot of bluster and even energy perhaps, but trying to make his case to the American people, to Congress that this budget is an important step forward.

I want to bring back our CNN panelists for a little post-game discussion. Joining me here, chief business correspondent, Ali Velshi.

And we've been talking about this throughout the news conference.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes.

MALVEAUX: We have a lot to talk about here. Our national correspondent Jessica Yellin, and our senior political analyst, Gloria Borger, as well as foreign affairs correspondent Jill Daugherty.

Ali, you and I were talking about this. I mean, obviously, he said there's not going to be a lot of rallying. It lacked a lot of energy, that perhaps the setting was not conducive to the big rah-rah speeches that people need to hear. But one things that struck is that there was a flash of frustration from him when he said, you guys are impatient --

VELSHI: Right.

MALVEAUX: -- on health care, on "don't ask, don't tell" --

VELSHI: Right.

MALVEAUX: -- and now on trying to get a hold of the federal deficit.

VELSHI: Yes.

MALVEAUX: You can tell that he is -- he's frustrated and even this bipartisan commission that was set up to deal with it, nothing has gone forward on those recommendations.

VELSHI: Right.

MALVEAUX: What stood out in your mind? VELSHI: Well, his last words, his very last words when he said what the American people want is the confirmation that the system works, it --

MALVEAUX: Far cry from "Yes, we can."

VELSHI: Right. This seemed very low key. I think the president kept saying that this is the framework and the devil will be in the details. I almost feel like he was saying, don't -- if you're a salesman, he's saying, don't buy the product just yet. This is sort of what it might look like, we'll get you the final one later.

He has not touched the biggest part of it. So, the parts of this budget deals with are the parts that he can deal with -- between 12 percent and 16 percent of the entire budget. Most of it is Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, nothing in there about this.

And you saw the questions to say, you have a whole commission. You had bipartisan support to do something about this, why nothing in here. And he kept saying, that's going to come up later. In other words, he's asking conservatives and Republicans to come in with their best shot at dealing with the burgeoning expenses of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, and he's not putting it into his budget. Very curious approach.

MALVEAUX: Gloria, what do you think about that? The fact that he kind of just passed the ball, if you will, and decided, hey, you know what? If you guys have better ideas, you come up with them. Here's what I've laid out. And I'm not addressing this yet.

GLORIA BORGER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: I actually think he was -- he was kind of honest about what's going on. At one point he said, look, we have to get in the boat at the same time, so it doesn't tip over -- which is what we've been talking about in terms of the politics of this. He wants to see what the Republicans are talking about, but -- when they proposed their budget in terms of entitlement reform.

But it was very interesting to me, because he seemed to be outlining a long-term deal that was very much outlined by the deficit commission, although he hasn't come out and endorsed it. On the one hand he said, yes, we do need entitlement reform, and then he started talking about tax reform at the same time -- not just corporate tax reform, but tax reform for people like you and me. And, you know, a lot of folks are talking about that as a way to do a huge budget deal, which is essentially lowering tax rates, and eliminating a lot of the tax loopholes that we have.

So, for the first time, we really heard him say, OK, maybe there is some kind of a grand compromise here. It's not going to happen overnight. Let's see what the Republicans talk about and then maybe we can get to the table.

MALVEAUX: Jessica, what did you think about the argument he made? He kept talking about, "I'm going to use a scalpel as opposed to a machete here," because a lot of people are looking at it -- and April Ryan brought up a very good point, is that those suffering the most are dealing with some pretty severe cuts here in some of these programs.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. This is what we always hear the president say when they cut out the budget. They always come out with a budget that has programs that are cut in their core constituencies, the favorite areas. They say we have to go carefully.

And he certainly has, with this budget, signaled that he's willing to go after things that are very important to Democrats, and also to regular Americans. And it's partly a wakeup call to regular Americans. You know, folks who aren't in Washington that, look, you are going to be suffering your real lives every day, possibly with less aid for your heating bill, if we don't tackle these other issues.

And I want to just make a point based on what Gloria said, Suzanne, which is that --

MALVEAUX: Sure.

YELLIN: -- a lot of what we heard in President Obama's comments was borrowing phrases that both Speaker Boehner and Leader McConnell have said in recent days regarding plans to rein in the deficit. That boat analogy that we have to get in the boat before --

MALVEAUX: Right.

YELLIN: -- that came from Speaker Boehner first. McConnell is the one who's been saying, you know, Tip O'Neill and Ronald Reagan solved Social Security together. McConnell has said we have to go together on entitlement reform.

What I'm hearing, without saying explicitly is, you know, McConnell and the president had lunch recently, that there is a discussion in the works, that they are all signaling that they do plan to take on entitlement reform. It wasn't in the budget. But I would expect something to be coming.

BORGER: And, you know, there's kind of an unknown here, which is that John Boehner really can't count votes at this point. He's got this huge new caucus, half of whom have never held elected office before, the newcomers. So, he's not quite sure where they are.

So, these people are talking privately. And I think what Jess is saying, they're talking privately, they're sending these public signals. They're going to argue over this year's budget to a certain degree, but they do understand that what the public wants for them is some kind of larger deal.

And so, you know, I don't want to be Pollyanna again, but they may be finding a way to actually work this out, shocking is that may seem.

MALVEAUX: Well, that would be a little bit shocking. Ali, you and I were talking as he was doing this press conference, and we were talking about, OK, so, here's the level -- this is what you bring in, this is what we spend. The difference is the deficit.

VELSHI: Right.

MALVEAUX: Did he address how you shrink that deficit, between the two?

VELSHI: He said that by about the mid-part of the decade, we will not be -- we will not be increasing the credit card bill is what he said. Well, the slightly misleading part of that is that even if you don't increase your credit card bill, if you have a big balance, you're paying interest on that. So, it continues to actually be more money you owe.

So, he started and one reporter sort of asked him to clarify and he clarified. I think the issue here is -- I think both of them have hit on this, and that is that there's a lot more to come. So, he didn't want to oversell his budget, knowing full well that a lot of the negotiations are going to go on behind closed doors. The one thing he has put in his budget is the increase in taxes for those earning more than $200,000, or couples earning more than $250,000. We know that the Republicans went to the mat on that one. So, that might become a bargaining chip.

MALVEAUX: And did we hear anything about jobs? Creating jobs that --

VELSHI: Yes.

MALVEAUX: -- will I guess shrink that gap?

VELSHI: Yes. So, there's a lot of money in here for infrastructure, for roads and high-speed transit. And some estimates suggest -- they haven't laid out how they're actually going to do it, but some estimates suggest that there are many, many jobs to be had there. At the same time, there are criticisms about the increase in taxes that the president wants and that that might actually cost jobs. So, we haven't had an estimate yet as to how many jobs this is likely to create or cost.

MALVEAUX: I want to turn the corner to my colleague, Jill Daugherty.

And, Jill, you were listening as well. What actually struck you? He did talk about the Middle East, he talked about Egypt, he talked about Iran. Were any of those points things that you heard and perked your ears?

JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, in kind of a different way, Suzanne, because, I -- you obviously heard a defense by the president. Initially, he was saying, hey, you guys have been saying this took three weeks in Egypt -- became a little defensive there. But then he said, I think I calibrated this just about right. And that was one of the big criticisms. You know, was he too tied to the Mubarak administration? Was he too tied to the protesters? And he's saying, not to hot, not too cold, just about right.

The other thing I think is Iran. And right at this moment, you're seeing the repercussions of what happened in Egypt playing out on the streets of Iran. And it's a much more difficult environment there, much more dangerous, and much more repressive. And I thought it was very interesting the way he phrased it, "I hope that people will continue to have the courage to express their longing," that is the Iranian people.

And again, we're kind of comparing Obama 2009-2010, when those demonstrators came on the streets after the bogus election, and were really beaten up. He was criticized a lot for not coming out quickly enough to condemn that. This time, they are wasting no time. Hillary Clinton here at the State Department and the president, in being very, very strong on Iran and its repression.

And then the last quick thing, Suzanne, the case of Raymond Davis, who is the U.S. diplomat who is being held in Pakistan -- it is really having a bad effect on relations. And we can actually report the president said it was a top priority to get him out, give him diplomatic immunity.

MALVEAUX: OK.

DOUGHERTY: And we can report also that John Kerry is right now in Lahore, Pakistan, at the request of this administration -- we are told -- not specifically to get Raymond Davis out, but to certainly talk about it. And an official telling CNN that that subject is definitely going to come up, and that Kerry is there to tone down the rhetoric.

MALVEAUX: OK. Thank you very much. Senator John Kerry mentioned there in Lahore, Pakistan.

And we're going to have much more on this news conference, what does this mean to you in terms of the president's budget, as well as what's happening in the Middle East -- right after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: We have Texas Republican Congressman Ron Paul who's on the phone now joining us. He has a lot to say about the president's explanation of the new budget proposal.

Mr. Paul, thank you so much for being here.

I want to start off simply by saying the president addressed the budget, and he did not address these huge entitlement programs -- Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security. Those are the big expenses of the government.

And he is offering a challenge, posing a challenge to Republicans such as yourself saying, look, what are you going to do about those entitlement programs? Do you have any ideas, alternatives, for really going after that part of the budget, the budget that is really costing this government and the people?

REP. RON PAUL (R), TEXAS (via telephone): You know, I have a lot of ideas. And if we had the government decides -- I would like, you know, I would get rid about six departments and I would bring all our troops home and change our foreign policy, and that would solve all our problems.

But in the real world, nobody's going to do that. In the real world, nobody wants to give up anything. So, the troops are going to stay overseas, the wars are going to expand --

MALVEAUX: But would you touch those entitlement programs, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security?

PAUL: Well, just dealing with that, that is one thing that you could also have priorities. You don't -- I personally don't think you have to start with somebody -- elderly that's getting medical care. But --

MALVEAUX: What would be the first thing you would do?

PAUL: I would change our foreign policy. And I would change -- I would save hundreds of billions of dollars immediately by bringing the troops home. I have -- I have an amendment for our budget that's coming up, and it's going to save $6 billion in foreign aid to four countries. I imagine I will get less than 100 votes on that.

But why -- why do we keep giving money to these foreign countries. This would include Egypt. Why did we invest $70 billion overseas to Egypt and we had to buy their friendship?

MALVEAUX: But do you think the equation in Egypt has changed? Now that you have President Hosni Mubarak out of power, essentially they're looking for reforms -- perhaps they will achieve a process towards democracy. Do you think that there should be American dollars that at least support that effort?

PAUL: Absolutely not. I think there's a better chance they would have true democracy without us. You know, when they have elections in the Middle East, if the wrong people win, we just ignore them and say it was not legitimate. We will support a dictator -- we support more dictators than democracy.

MALVEAUX: Do you support what you've seen in Egypt?

PAUL: Oh, I'd love to see the people rebellion. What I don't like and what I worry about is right now, one of Mubarak's best friends who runs the army, they have, you know, martial law, the army's in charge, and the army depends 100 percent on us. They wouldn't have an army without us. So, we're probably in the process of picking the next dictator. And hopefully it will be a lot better than that. But, basically, you know, that is what happens. We have to prop up our dictators, because democracy, when there's true elections over there, we're unhappy with the elections. You know, there was a democratic elected leader in the '50s in Iran, Mosaddegh, we kicked him out and put in our dictator which has led to chaos in Iran, for all these years. So, I don't -- I think that has to change.

And when you get back to the budget, you could save a lot of money, we would be a lot safer and you wouldn't have to kick elderly people off medical care. But I've never voted for any budget, you know, any appropriations. So, I'm on record for not supporting any of it because I've been worried about this for a long time.

MALVEAUX: Well, tell me, what does the Tea Party -- what does the Tea Party that's now come into power in this new Congress, what kind of responsibility do they have in terms of the budget itself? We know that they are about making severe cuts. We don't hear any kind of specifics.

PAUL: I think there's some truth to that. But the Tea Party movement is pretty loose. There's no one Tea Party movement with one leader. But they're worried about the deficit. And they'd like to see the cuts.

And yet -- I think it is true that they're not out there chomping at the bit to freeze benefits or cut benefits for Social Security or raise the retirement age. No, I don't think -- I don't think they are. I think they're --

MALVEAUX: Would you push them to do more? Do you think -- do they think they should do more?

PAUL: The Tea Party people?

MALVEAUX: Yes.

PAUL: Oh, I don't -- I think that's -- I don't think it's relevant. I mean, I --

MALVEAUX: Why not?

PAUL: Because nobody controls the Tea Party people. They're restless. It's sort of like looking at those people who finally rebelled in Egypt and saying, OK, what is the consensus on what you want?

Nobody puts down a list of things about what everybody believes in. They're just disgusted with the status quo, and that's what's coming here.

The status quo here is government is too big -- they agree on that. There's too much spending and there's too much deficit -- they agree on that. But I think there's less agreement on, well, where do you cut? Do you cut foreign aid before you cut medical care? You know, that's the kind of stuff, the technicalities. We're addicted to spending, we're addicted to debt, and we're addicted to printing money. And believe me, it is not going to be easy to deal with this -- I look at this like you're treating an alcoholic and say, well, we're going to put you in treatment and we're going to wean you off, every day, drink one less beer. It doesn't work.

MALVEAUX: Congressman Ron Paul --

PAUL: That's why they're not even dealing with that. They have to deal with what kind of government we want. Do we want a welfare or warfare state? As long they do, you can't solve this problem.

MALVEAUX: All right. We're going to have to leave it there. Congressman Ron Paul, thank you for joining us.

Obviously, a lot of debate around the role of the government and whether or not it should be spending and how far these cuts should go, the role of the Tea Party -- all of this -- and how it impacts your life. We're going to have much of that after this quick break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Let's get you up to speed.

President Obama just wrapped up his first solo news conference of the year. The overriding topic by far: your money. The president defended his 2012 budget proposals against some Republican criticism. And he says there are some deep cuts that have to be made, some are even hard for him to take.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: My goal is to make sure that we're looking after the vulnerable, we're looking after the disabled, we're looking after our seniors, we're making sure that our education system is serving our kids so that they can compete in the 21st century, we're investing in the future -- and doing that in a way that's sustainable.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Now, this spectacle in Iran's parliament today, lawmakers demanding the execution of two prominent government opponents. The men called supporters to the streets Monday to show solidarity with the Egyptians. Now, both are under house arrest.

And we're monitoring a news conference by Iran's president set for the bottom of the hour. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad backed the uprising in Egypt inspired by Iran -- all the while the regime was cracking down on Iranians who want democracy.

And protesters in Yemen rallied for democracy for a fifth straight day today, and again, they were bashed with sticks, rocks, by the supporters of the government. And demonstrators are demanding that Yemen's president step aside immediately after a three-decade grip on power.

And Egypt's new military rulers want the United States to freeze the assets of some top officials from the Mubarak government. That word is coming from a senior administration official. The State Department will only say that it has not received a formal request from Cairo.

In Milan today, a judge ordered Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi to stand trial in April. Prosecutors claim that he paid an underage teen for sex. Three judges, all women, will hear this case. And Berlusconi does not have to attend. He is calling this case a farce.

An airline passenger bill of rights landed in Congress today. The legislation would force carriers to let passengers off a plane if it's been on the tarmac for three hours. Now, airlines already have to do this under a Transportation Department rule. Supporters want the measure to have the force of law.

And here's your chance to talk back now on the budget. Carol Costello is here with more.

And, Carol, we heard the president outline, try to convince the American people, members of Congress, that he believes this is the way to go forward. But a lot of folks are also really going to be suffering because of the -- because of some of those cuts.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Not many people can say they really like this budget, right? Some of President Obama's budget cuts, though, are intriguing -- in light of allegations he has a socialist agenda.

Cut heating assistance for low-income families and senior citizens? Eliminate Pell Grants for poor students going to summer school? Slash community action programs for low-income housing? All of that is in a "sorry it hurts me but your cut" category in President Obama's budget.

Progressives are crying foul. Nearly 44 million Americans -- that's one in seven -- live below the poverty level. That's the largest number since 1948. The gap between rich and poor has never been so wide.

Left-leaning Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont has published a booklet of letters from low and middle -- low and middle class Americans, describing their pain. Sanders says the president's budget is too easy on the wealthy at the expense of the poor.

Now, keep in mind the president also says he thinks tax cuts for the rich should expire in 2013. He wants to trim high-income earners' tax deduction for mortgage interest payments. And he wants to eliminate tax loopholes for oil companies.

Still, progressives say Mr. Obama is throwing the poor under the bus.

So talk back today -- is the president balancing the budget on the backs of the poor?

Facebook.com/CarolCNN, send your comments. We'll read them later on in the hour.

MALVEAUX: OK. Thank you, Carol.

COSTELLO: Sure.

MALVEAUX: Still to come on the rundown, four Wal-Mart employees take down a shoplifter with a loaded gun. Now, they are out of a job.

Iran's president may explain why he backed protesters in Egypt, but brutalizes them in his own country. We're going to be monitoring that news conference coming up.

Also, you may notice a price increase in a lot of things that you use every day. Well, the CNN Money Team explains how much more you're going to be paying, and what is behind these price hikes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Well, get ready to spend more on many of the things that you buy. Prices are rising on everything. We're talking about groceries, to even the refrigerator that you put the groceries in.

So, why are prices going up and by how much?

We want to bring in our own Christine Romans from our Money Team.

Christine, tell us why? Break it down for us, what's happening?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's interesting, because manufacturers have been able to, Suzanne, sort of absorb these costs for a few months as commodities' prices have been rising. But now, they're starting to tell investors, they're starting to say, look, we're going to start passing these prices on and here's how much you can expect.

Meat, dairy, produce prices have all been rising. You can expect maybe a 3 percent rise here. Most recently, a freeze in Mexico could mean shortages of tomatoes and cucumbers. So, that's just the latest sort of glitch there. You can see those prices rising.

Also, for cereal, up 3 percent to 4 percent. It might be some cereal makers won't be able to raise the price of the box of the cereals, so maybe they'll be fewer manufacturers coupon, but you've seen wheat, grain, corn prices soaring over the past years. That will be translated into the prices of these products that you buy at the grocery store.

OK. Cotton -- cotton prices, Suzanne, are at the highest they've ever been, $1.90 for a pound of cotton. What does that mean? Well, that means that many of the retailers, and manufacturers, who for years have been keeping apparel prices very low, because they've moved a lot of their production offshore -- well, now, these cotton prices are starting to pop them. You can see 10 percent increases in things like underwear, t-shirts.

And it's not just the commodity prices are rising, Suzanne, is that there wage pressures in some of these countries that have had very, very low wages for a long time. So, they're getting hit there, too. Also, shipping costs are rising for many of these people, these companies who are shipping this stuff halfway around the world.

OK. Now, let's talk about the refrigerator. You mentioned that the food in the refrigerator is -- prices are rising. Well, the refrigerator prices could be rising, too -- maybe 8 percent to 10 percent. Whirlpool, LG, they have both said that they are going to be raising prices because of steel and because of metal prices increases, but also because of those labor prices around the world.

And toothpaste, soap, you can see 1 percent to 2 percent price increases there, because things like palm oil and many of the ingredients that go into the beauty products and health care products, those have been moving higher as well.

Now, Suzanne, I talked to an economist, John Ryding at RDQ Economics, and I said, is it just things like cold snaps and rising China gobbling up the world's resources? What are the reasons why so many commodities are moving up all at the same time?

He blames the Fed, pumping $600 billion into the economy, keeping the dollar low. He says that many of these commodities have become almost like financial instruments, where investors, speculators are pushing money into these hard assets at a time when the economy's also starting to recover and there's more demand for these things, and that's driving up a lot of different commodity prices around the world. Suzanne?

MALVEAUX: So, we should just all be prepared to spend a lot more money, huh?

ROMANS: At least a little bit more money. Maybe a lot more. Maybe by the second half of the year, you'll see more of these price increases coming into play.

MALVEAUX: All right. OK. Christine Romans. Thank you so much, Christine.

ROMANS: Sure!

MALVEAUX: Four former Wal-Mart workers are looking at their legal options today. That's because the retail giant fired them for taking down a shoplifter who had a cocked gun. Wal-Mart's company policy allows workers to restrain suspects, but if a weapon is involved, employees must, quote, "disengage and withdraw." Well, two of the fired Wal-Mart workers talked with the team at CNN's "AMERICAN MORNING."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHAWN RAY, FIRED BY WAL-MART FOR RESTRAINING SHOPLIFTER: We stopped him at the door and asked him to follow us to our office which is just inside the grocery doors, and asked him to return all merchandise to us. He pulled it out from underneath his clothing and put it on the desk and then backed up and acted like he was going to sit down, and then, said he need to leave, and we said, no, it's all right, just hang tight, we're going to sit here.

And he goes I have something I need to get rid of. We assumed it was drug paraphernalia. And we asked -- it's OK. Just calm down. Put it at up here on the table for us. It's not a big deal. Instead, he reached into the small of his back and pulls out a gun and hold it down to his right side and cocks the hammer back and then says, no, I'm leaving and charged into the three of us.

CHETRY: CHETRY: Right. And here's what Wal-Mart said -- no. They contacted us and said we appreciate the intentions demonstrated by our associates, but after a thorough review of what took place, it was determined that the actions put their safety and potentially the safety of our customers and other associate in jeopardy. That coming from Wal-Mart spokesman, Dan Fogleman. What do you think when you hear that, Lori?

LAURIE POULSEN, FIRED BY WAL-MART FOR RESTRAINING SHOPLIFTER: I kind of am shocked a little bit because our actions kept everybody safe. Right outside our office is the main entrance where there are hundreds of civilian people who have no self-defense training, no defense mechanisms. They would have been pretty much sitting ducks, in my opinion. They wouldn't know what was coming at them, and yet, Wal-Mart's opinion is that we should have let him knowing he had a gun into the vestibule of all of those citizens.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Experts say that Wal-Mart's policy is typical in the retail world. They say that it protects employees' safety and the company's legal liability.

Well, Italy's colorful prime minister is marking his calendar today. Our CNN's Michael Holmes and I, we're going to talk about the latest in the Berlusconi sex scandal.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEUAX: Today's "Globe Trekking" takes us literally from Italy to the North and South Poles. Our Michael Holmes has around-the-clock and around-the-world look at all of this.

We'll start off with Italy. You and I - we just can't get enough of this story.

MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Too much Berlusconi is never enough.

MALVEAUX: What is going on?

HOLMES: Well, we talked earlier about the fact that we're going to find out when the trial date is going to be for the naughtiness that he's alleged to have done. That date is now set. These charges, of course, sex with an underage prostitute. That's the salacious one, if you like.

April 6th, all eyes are going to be watching for this sensational trial. That's going to take place in Milan. Now, Berlusconi denies that charge. He says the whole thing is a farce. It's all set up by his political opponents.

But this is the other charge. Potentially more damaging politically, and has a longer jail term as well. A charge of abuse of power. Now, this stems from the 74-year-old leader calling the cops to have that underage prostitute released after she had been picked up for theft some time later.

This is where it gets interesting. If convicted, this is a sitting prime minister. He could get up to 15 years in prison. Which would be a bit of a lifestyle change for this guy. He's said to be worth $9 billion. Everything from TV stations to one of the world's soccer glamer clubs, AC Milan.

MALVEAUX: So, to say the least, a change in lifestyle. His standard of living would dramatically go down.

HOLMES: Just a little, yes.

MALVEAUX: Now, I understand, though, this has really gotten a lot of people angry. And mostly women around the world who are now demonstrating against Berlusconi.

HOLMES: Can you blame them in a way? Because his isn't the first time this guy's been in trouble. He's said to have sex parties at his villa and all sorts of stuff. But this largest demonstration we see it there, was in Rome. 100,000 people came out, mostly women, carrying banners reading, "Italy is not a brothel." Other things like that. They were protesting dozens of other cities and towns around Italy, even Tokyo and Geneva.

Now, one little bit of irony, when the trial begins, guess what? All three judges, women.

MALVEAUX: OK. So he's got that to look forward to. We'll see how that turns out.

HOLMES: It's going to be interesting.

MALVEAUX: Okay. "Globe Trekking." Literally. We have a story about, I guess, a 48-year-old who wants to run, planning a run from the North Pole to the South Pole.

HOLMES: As one does, yes. And of course, he's Australian. So, that's why he's so brave and adventurous.

His name is Pat Farmer. He's going to run the equivalent of two marathons a day. We're talking 13,000 miles. I think we've got the route for you there. We'll show it to you. He's going to start in the Arctic Circle. Watch out for the polar bears. And complete the journey in Antarctica, down closer to home, around February of next year. He said it will take 11 months to complete. He's most worried, actually, about temperature extremes, not polar bears. It's going to go from minus 40 in the cold bits to over 100 in Nicaragua he's going through in South America. He's not worried about his endurance abilities that's for sure. Have a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PAT FARMER, RUNNING FROM NORTH TO SOUTH POLE: It will be good, you know. I'll get around eight to ten hours of sleep. At the moment, I survive on just four hours of sleep.

But I'll just be a machine. I'll get up in the morning, I'll run, I'll eat -- I'll eat, drink, sleep, run. That's it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Yes. Not bad. He's doing this actually, to raise $100 million for the Australian Red Cross. This guy's a former politician, actually. Served eight years in the federal parliament. He said he saw a lot of suffering during his tenure.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FARMER: I was a member of parliament. And I sat in a cushy office, I had so many people coming to me about aid, international aid. And you would talk about millions and billions of dollars. And these numbers were just -- they meant almost nothing to you.

But then I had the opportunity to get out there and see firsthand. I went to India, Egypt, Nepal and Peru, and I saw the incredible work that the International Red Cross does worldwide in these communities.

And face it. It's not just areas where there's poor sanitary conditions and lack of fresh drinking water, but as soon as there's a hurricane or there's flood or something like that, they need fresh drinking water straight away. So, I saw this work firsthand. I lived in rubbish, smelled the stench of those communities and I wanted to do something about it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOLMES: Yes. Amazing guy. I think all politicians should run from the North Pole to the South Pole.

MALVEAUX: Now, you're not going to let him show you up, right? He's your mate, as you say, from Australia. You may have to do some running yourself.

HOLMES: No, it's not happening.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: Not happening. You're not inspired?

HOLMES: No. But I'll live on four hours of sleep a night, how is that?

MALVEAUX: Yes, we already do that. All right, thanks, Michael.

HOLMES: Good to see you.

MALVEAUX: Time for our most intriguing person of the day. He is in the NBA Hall of Fame and executive producer of a documentary profiling what's been called the greatest basketball team you've never heard of.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALEVAUX: During his 20-year career, he scored more points than any other player in NBA history. Now, he has turned his attention to the Harlem reins. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar is the executive producer of a documentary about this African-American basketball team from the 1920s and 30s. It releases today. That makes him our most intriguing person of the day.

Iran's president is scheduled to speak today. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is set to discuss domestic and international issues in a televised address. It comes just one day after tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets of Tehran in solidarity with Egypt.

Mr. Ahmadinejad applauded Egypt's protesters, but attacked his own. The Iranian regime sharply restricts visas for journalists, but our determined Reza Sayah is able to monitor the developments from our Iran desk in neighboring Pakistan.

And Reza, Iranian lawmakers are demanding the execution, I understand, of opposition leaders. That sounds shocking. I mean, how are people receiving this word, this news in Iran? What do they think of this call?

REZA SAYAH, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, I think today in Tehran, we saw a glimpse at how perhaps Iran's hard- line leadership plans to respond to this comeback for Iran's opposition movement, the so-called Green Movement, specifically how they plan to respond to these two opposition figures who called for this rally yesterday.

Today, in Iran's parliament, dozens of angry, seething lawmakers calling for the trial and execution of those two opposition figures. Also calling for the execution and trial of former reformist president Mohamad Fatan (ph).

So, certainly tensions have ratcheted up in Iran. And this face- off, this bitter rivalry between Iran's hard-line leadership and opposition movement has escalated. Now the question is, will Iran's hard line leadership heed the calls of lawmakers that we heard today? Will they arrest these opposition figures that sparked this rally and this comeback for this green movement that we hadn't seen in the streets for more than a year.

Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And, Reza, are there any more calls for protests?

SAYAH: There are calls for protests. And it's not clear when they're going to happen. But I think all sides who have any say in where things go, how things develop in the next few days and weeks, have a very tough call. I mean you take the opposition movement, the protesters. If they choose to come out and protest, they risk a more punishing, a more brutal crackdown by the government. If the government decides to crack down, and especially go after these two opposition figures, they risk energizing and giving more momentum to this opposition movement.

And then you have Washington, the Obama administration, who in the past had stood back and not vocally and aggressively condemned the regime and supported the opposition movement for fear that it would play into the narrative of the regime. That this is a western ploy to topple the regime. But over the past couple of days, and especially today with Mr. Obama's speech, we saw that it's a different strategy this time. He's being much more vocal in condemning the regime, the Iranian hard line leadership, in supporting the opposition movement. Will that be effective? Will that mean a different outcome in the coming weeks and months? That remains to be seen, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Reza Sayah, thank you so much for joining us.

Well, the budget, your money and a chance to talk back. Carol, she's got your responses.

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MALVEAUX: Well, sometimes the claws come out in the political rat race. That is why Larry is our "Random Moment Of The Day." The cat's first day at 10 Downing Street as Britain's new minister of pest control. Seems the prime minister, David Cameron, has a rat problem. Number ten's last rat catcher, Humphrey, retired when the Blair's arrived in 1997. Well, Humphrey and Tony Blair's wife, Cherie, apparently didn't see eye to eye.

President Obama held his first solo news conference of the year. The main topic was money and the budget. Well, here's your chance to talk back. Carol Costello has your responses.

Carol, I imagine you heard from a lot of folks.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: A lot of people talking back today, Suzanne. Considering the president's proposal to cut some programs, like Pell grants to needy students and home heating that -- home heating bills. He would slash a program that helps the poor and seniors with home heating bills and, of course, that would impact the poorest Americans. So the talk back today, is Mr. Obama balancing the budget on the backs of the poor?

This from Melody. She says, "yes, Obama wants to cut off the poor seniors and students. All in Washington are wanting to cut off the poor, seniors and students."

This from Rex. "Absolutely not. The president has talked about compromise all along. His budget is consistent with that rhetoric."

And this from Guy. He says, "this is the change we can't stand for in our country. Reagan was president during the '80s, but the country is in need of 2011 ideas to solve our problems."

And finally from Dennis, "shouldn't he man up and slash military spending so he'd have enough money to pull the poor out from under the bus?"

Keep the conversation going, facebook.com/carolcnn. And you know I always enjoy conversing with you after our show is done.

Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: OK. Thank you, Carol.

You've heard the expression, the clothes make the man. But in New York's Fashion Week, it is often the models that can make or break the latest looks. And our Alina Cho, very fashionable herself, takes us behind the scenes.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Time now for "The Help Desk," where we get answers to your financial questions. Joining me this hour, Ryan Mack. He's the president of Optimum Capital Management. And Doug Flynn. He's a certified financial planner and founder of Flynn Zito.

Glad you guys are here with us today.

Let's get to our first question from anonymous who writes in, "I know that if I withdraw money from my 401(k) early, I have to pay a tax and penalty. Will the tax and penalty be on the whole amount?"

Doug.

DOUG FLYNN, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER: Well, likely it will be, especially if it was pre-tax money that went in. That will definitely be in (ph). Here's the thing. If you're about 40 years old and you have $10,000 in your retirement account, you think it's $10,000. But realistically, after taxes and penalties, it might only be $6,000 or $7,000. And the bigger issue is, if you take that money out and you don't leave it there for 25 years, you might have $50,000 in there. So you see $10,000, you might only get six or seven, and you're missing out on possibly 50 at retirement.

ELAM: Know the bigger picture. Think about that.

All right, our next question comes in from Jordany in Florida, who writes, "does my mortgage company have the right to keep reporting me to the credit bureau every month after my foreclosure has been finalized?"

What do you say, Ryan?

RYAN MACK, PRES. OPTIMUM CAPITAL MANAGEMENT: You know it's a big problem out here with deficiency judgments. Individuals going out and they go through foreclosure and think they're free and clear of all their obligations. Well, what happens is, if they sell your home in a sheriff -- the auction for less than the amount owed, in many states, they have the right to go back to the amount that you were short. So sometimes individuals, months later, will come back and they'll get a or three hundred thousand dollar bills in which they are getting requests for financial statements, they may be garnishing wages. And some individuals, for lack of response, are actually getting put in prison for this type of (INAUDIBLE). So what you have to do is, when you're going through foreclosure, make sure you get a good HUD counselor or at least an attorney to give you all the ins and outs and make sure you know exactly what you're getting into.

ELAM: And know what may be coming down the pipe afterwards.

MACK: Yes.

ELAM: Gentlemen, thank you so much for your advice today.

If you have a question that you want to get answered, go ahead, send us an e-mail any time, cnnhelpdesk@cnn.com. We're happy to help you out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: Charlie Sheen is giving advice on drug use. And it is trending online. During an interview with "The Dan Patrick Show," Sheen told listeners that he is undergoing substance abuse treatment at home. And he had this advice.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHARLIE SHEEN, ACTOR (voice-over): I said, stay away from the crack, which I think is pretty good advice. Unless you can manage it socially, Dan. If you can manage it socially, then go for it. But not a lot of people can, you know? So what --

DAN PATRICK, HOST, "THE DAN PATRICK SHOW" (voice-over): Did you think you could?

SHEEN: Did -- sorry?

PATRICK: Did you think you could?

SHEEN: Yes, yes, but that kind of -- that kind of blew up in my face.

PATRICK: Are you --

SHEEN: Like an exploding crack pipe, Dan. Sorry.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: Sheen says he's ready to get back to work. He said, quote, "I healed really quickly, but I also unraveled really quickly. So get me right now. Well, CBS Warner Brothers television, which produces Sheen's hit show, declined to comment. And Tiger Woods says he's sorry, this time for spitting on a green. It happened after he failed to sink a par putt during Sunday's final round of the Dubai Desert Classic. He tweeted that it was inconsiderate to spit like that and I know better. Just wasn't thinking and want to say I'm sorry.

Fashion Week is under way now in New York. And what may be more important than a designer's collection is actually the model who wears it. So we wanted to know, what makes the perfect model. Of course, cue my colleague, fashionable Alina Cho.

ALINA CHO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Suzanne.

Designers call it a make-or-break moment. Sure, the clothes are important. But if the wrong model is wearing them, it can be a fashion disaster. That's why casting a fashion show is so important. And if you think the models just have to be beautiful, think again.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CHO (voice-over): The glitz, the glamour, fashion's catwalk is where the clothes come alive and the model is key.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's almost like match-making. What does this outfit want to go with? What kind of personality does it go with?

CHO: A cut-throat lucrative business where models can earn $500 to $15,000 a show. Corolla's (ph) a rookie.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This is what you have to do every day like nine times.

CHO: She's on a casting call at the Daniel Pedal (ph) agency, competing against 300 other girls for just 35 spots.

JOURDAN DUNN, MODEL: Not everyone's going to love you. Some people are going to hate you. Some people are going to (INAUDIBLE). It's part of the job.

CHO: There are the basics. Height, 5'9", beauty, a good walk, and then there's that je ne sais quoi, like personality.

SCOTT LIPPS, PRESIDENT, ONE MANAGEMENT: If a photographer is going to be trying to casting (ph), they want to make sure that, you know, that you have energy to give them on a shoot. That you're just not a pretty face that's not going to give something back.

CHO: So what are designers looking for?

LIPPS: Certain seasons a designer will say to us, you know, the look of the show is going to be, for instance, there's a sort of sun- kissed look and we want girls that have freckles and red hair.

CHO: Or blondes. Or edgy brunettes. Or this.

DUNN: I was just about to go into a casting and my agency calls me like, no, Jourdan, don't go in there. They only want white models this season. I'm like, oh, OK.

CHO: Yet Corolla wants in. And this season, she's one of the lucky ones.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It was such a great feeling. It was like butterflies in my whole body. It was really, really great.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

CHO: Corolla also walks the Diane von Furstonberg show on Sunday. A very big deal. Lots of editors, lots of photographers. Suzanne, the very people who decide whether images of Corolla will make their way into the magazines. And that's the next step in a model's career.

Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Thank you, Alina.

CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Ali Velshi.