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GOP Debate Tonight in Las Vegas; GOP's Balancing Act on Immigration; Obama Sells Jobs Plan on Bus Tour; Hillary Clinton Visits Tripoli; 477 Palestinians Swapped for Israeli Soldier; Israeli Soldier Back with Family After Five Years; Firefighter Catches Dropped Boy; Monster Dust Storm Darkens Skies; Police: Suspect had Dozens of People's IDs; "Dungeon" Victims Speak; Kelsey Grammer Talks Marriage; Actress Calls Pope a Nazi; DWTS Contestant Losing Weight; Coffee Threatened by Climate Change; 5,000 Camped Out for Free Health Care
Aired October 18, 2011 - 10:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Herman Cain has been capturing the buzz and much of the criticism. His latest misstep involves illegal immigration, a pretty sensitive issue that worries Republican leaders. That's because of the growing power of the Latino vote.
In 2000, there were just over 13 million eligible Latino voters. A decade later, that number skyrocketed to more than 21 million. Jim Acosta takes a closer look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: When I'm in charge of the fence, we're going to have a fence.
JIM ACOSTA, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Herman Cain insists these comments on illegal immigrants crossing the border did not cross the line.
CAIN: It's going to be 20 feet high. It's going to have barbed wire on the top. It's going to be electrified and there's going to be a sign on the other side that says, it will kill you, warning. Mr. Cain, that's insensitive. No, it is insensitive for them to be killing our citizens, killing our border agents.
ACOSTA: The outspoken conservative businessman said he was only kidding.
CAIN: It was a joke, John. Yes, I have to learn how to be politically correct yet. So, yes, it probably wasn't the right thing to say and I admit I did not mean to offend anybody.
ALEX CASTELLANOS, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: This is the education of Herman Cain. He's learning the difference between being a minor league candidate and all of a sudden being at the top of the heap.
There are things you can say when you are getting attention that you just can't say when people are looking at you as a serious contender.
ACOSTA: Cain made the comments just a couple of days before meeting Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who's become the Donald Trump of illegal immigration politics. Arpaio who's getting visits and calls from several Republican contenders says Cain was right on message.
SHERIFF JOE ARPAIO, MARICOPA COUNTY, ARIZONA: I kind of like this guy because he's unconventional, controversial, tells it like it is, kind of like me.
CAIN: Yes.
ACOSTA: But Latino Republicans worry that tough talk will backfire.
MARIO LOPEZ, HISPANIC LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE: This is a type of rhetoric that's turned off a lot of Latino voters in the past and I think that's a bit unfortunate from the Republican point of view, but the fact that he's trying to walk back his comments now I think is telling.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Illegal sneaking across our border, putting Americans' safety and jobs at risk.
ACOSTA: In Nevada, Republican Senate Candidate Sharon Angle outraged Hispanics with this attacked ad showing Latino actors portraying illegal immigrants. Angle's opponent, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid went on to capture nearly 90 percent of the Latino vote.
But the latest CNN/ORC poll finds Cain's style is catching fire. He's neck and neck with frontrunner Mitt Romney and has nearly traded places with Rick Perry who seen by some Tea Party activists as weak on illegal immigration.
Cain is also major worry for Romney in poll after poll it appears the Massachusetts governor has peaked among supporters in Republicans.
NEWT GINGRICH (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There is a natural ceiling. If you go back and look at the race last time, he ran into a natural ceiling.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ACOSTA: And one of the big questions for tonight's debate is whether the other candidates on the stage will challenge Herman Cain on these immigration comments. After all, the race for the GOP nomination, Kyra, has been very much a race to the right on the issue of illegal immigration -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, you talk about the Latino vote in the Republican primary, but how about in the general election?
ACOSTA: That is the big worry for Republicans. You know, a lot of this might make sense right now in the Republican nomination battle. You saw Mitt Romney taking on Rick Perry coming down really hard on the Texas governor of the issue of tuition breaks for children of undocumented workers down in Texas.
But keep in mind back in 2008, President Obama captured 70 percent of the Latino vote. So while, you know, the immigration politics that's being played right now in the Republican Party specifically by Herman Cain may play well to the Tea Party base.
They may hear those comments that they heard over the weekend on Saturday out in Tennessee and think, yes, he was only joking, but that is not going to sit well with a lot of Latino voters who will have a big influence on the outcome come November next year -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. Jim Acosta live for us out of Vegas. Tonight live on CNN the Republican candidates for president go head-to-head there in Vegas. The Western Republican Presidential debate tonight right here on CN at 8:00 Eastern.
Well, President Obama hits the midway point of his three-day bus tour today. He's in North Carolina where he scooped up some sweets at a local candy store, but there's no sugar coating his message to Republicans in Congress.
He'll calling on them to pass the main elements of his jobs plan and get more Americans back to work. Stay with us. Next hour, President Obama pitches the American Jobs Act at a community college in Jamestown that's scheduled for 11:20 Eastern. We'll carry those remarks live.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has arrived in Tripoli. Her plane landed there just a few hours ago. CNN's Jill Dougherty is traveling with the secretary and filed this report for us.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JILL DOUGHERTY, CNN FOREIGN AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wheels down in Tripoli, Libya. The first cabinet level U.S. official to visit the capital since 2008 and since opposition forces liberated it from Gadhafi loyalists two months ago.
Gadhafi remains at large. Battles rage in two major cities, but a senior State Department official traveling with the secretary told reporters, I think it is exactly the right time for us to be coming.
Clinton's mission, congratulate the Libyan people on what they have achieved so far, offer a partnership with the U.S. and meet with leaders of the ruling National Transitional Council to discuss its challenging political road map.
One of the biggest issues, treatment of wounded fighters, 15,000 of them, including 1,500 amputees according to U.S. officials. Secretary Clinton plans to unveil a five-part program to help them, including spare parts for medical equipment and possibly bringing some of the wounded to the United States for specialized care.
Clinton is also bringing more money for hunting down and destroying shoulder fired heat-seeking missiles. Clinton's short visit to Tripoli was conducted under tight security. Gadhafi and the State Department officials still have henchmen, loyalists and thugs, although the officials deny Gadhafi is coordinated the resistance.
I wouldn't estimate his ability to be a lethal nuisance the officials say, but I'm also convinced the Libyan people are going to prevail. Jill Dougherty, CNN, Tripoli.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Gilah Shalit should be flying home any minute now. He is the Israeli soldier who spent more than five years in captivity. His freedom traded for more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.
Zain Verjee is tracking the pictures for us now. Zain, let's talk about how the world is reacting to the news. You are following the headlines throughout the morning.
ZAIN VERJEE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, let me tell you a little bit about what's being said. There's a lot of mixed reaction to what is happening with the Palestinian prisoner exchanges as we look at these live pictures.
Let me tell you what the "Jerusalem Post" headline is. It says, "Mixed emotions on Shalit's deal." Feelings fluctuate from joy at the prospect that Shalit will finally be free after more than five long years of captivity to trepidation that the release will lead to more terrorism and more violence.
"Gulf News" has this headline, Shalit deal a win-win situation for all. It says there is a debate raging in Israel over the wisdom of the swap, which some believe in unethical or a betrayal of victims' memories. Of the spirit might encourage further abductions. The majority, however, are too busy savouring the euphoria of the moment to care.
And then take a look at the "Wall Street Journal Asia," Israel's unequal exchange. Sooner or later Israel will learn the name of the next Gilad Shalit. Sooner or later too, it will learn that the better courses to give its enemies reasons to think twice before taking hostages in the first place -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right, Zain Verjee for us live out of London. Fred Pleitgen is actually in the hometown of Gilad Shalit in Northern Israel. Fred, what's the reaction from there?
FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, people are elated that Gilad Shalit is now finally on his way back after, of course, 5-1/2 years in captivity. And show you that a lot of people are actually already gathering on the streets here.
They've been basically draping the entire streets here with posters of Gilad Shalit with signs saying welcome home, Gilad. As you can see a lot of them have the Israeli flag. They've been waving the Israeli flag.
They have also been placing white roses on the sidewalk of the street where to find the house of the Shalits. I've been speaking to people here and they say even with some of that controversy that you know, Zain was just talking about, when you were talking to her just a second ago.
They feel that in effect this was a good deal and they are happy that it went through. We'll listen in to what one man had to say earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GILAD SHALIT, ISRAELI SOLDIER (through translator): I hope that this still will help to achieve peace between the Palestinian and Israeli sides. And this would support the cooperation between the two sides.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PLEITGEN: That wasn't, of course, the sound bite that I was talking about. That was Gilad Shalit speaking in that interview with Egyptian TV. But nevertheless, people here are very, very happy.
They're prepared the scene. They say want to welcome Gilad Shalit home, but what they're also saying is that, of course, they will give him time to sort of sort things out with himself.
People say that he now needs time for himself after, of course, what was 5-1/2 years of a very, very traumatizing experience -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. Fred Pleitgen, we'll be following that homecoming with you. We're also going to talk with Matthew Chance who is joining us live from Gaza City where celebrations on a different front are taking place there.
Meanwhile, straight ahead, a Boston firefighter catches a 6-year-old boy dropped from a third-floor window.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Twenty two years.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you ever seen anything like this?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Like that, no. I hope I don't in the next 22 years.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: We're going to hear more from the fireman and the little boy that he saved right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: All right, checking stories cross country now. A Boston fireman is being called a hero today as he rescued a 6-year-old boy dropped by his grandmother from a window of a burning building. Listen to how he caught him right in his arms.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One free arm was flailing, his legs were flailing so I really wasn't sure when she dropped him exactly where he was going to end up.
XAVIER DELONEY, FIRE VICTIM: She started to drop me down. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And that big fireman was right there?
DELONEY: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It happened to be in the right place at the right time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What did you say to him when he caught you?
DELONEY: Thank you.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Well, 15 people were rescued. Police have arrested a man now on a suspicion of arson.
And in Oakland, California, freed U.S. hiker Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal spoke at an "Occupy Wall Street" rally last night. It's their first hometown appearance since being released from an Iranian prison just one month ago.
And take a look at this video that went from day tonight almost immediately in Lubbock, Texas. This was right after a monster dust storm just blew through the city. Strong winds churned up a rolling cloud of dust. Guess how high it was, 8,000 feet.
Philadelphia police and FBI are trying to get their heads around the scope of a fraud and abuse case. Three people are accused of holding four mentally challenged adults as prisoners and stealing their Social Security checks.
Cops say the suspected ring leader had IDs belonging to dozens of different people and may have been scamming folks for years. Meantime, we are getting a first look into the filthy basement that was called the dungeon. That's where the victims were found last weekend. And we have first-hand accounts. We are hearing what was done to them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was real dirty of you. That was wrong.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did you guys willingly give you her information?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, she asked for it. She took it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Police are also investigating whether a teenage girl missing from Florida who turned up in Philly is somehow connected to that same case.
Climate change could be forcing Starbucks to look beyond coffee. The company might get into the juice bar business. We'll take a look at that coming up. Also, Kelsey Grammar had a very public and nasty divorce with his third wife, Camille. The actor says he still gave her a parting gift. We'll find out what it was in today's showbiz headlines.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Kelsey Grammar opens up about his marriage and divorce to his third wife. And last night, the actor was on "Piers Morgan Tonight." He had some pretty interesting things to say about his wife, Camille, and why she married him.
"SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" host A.J. Hammer has all the scoop. Hi, A.J.
A.J. HAMMER, HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": I don't think she's thinking they are interesting this morning, Kyra, but that remains to be seen. These guys had a pretty ugly breakup even by Hollywood standards.
A lot of it, of course, was chronicled with Camille's appearance on "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills." But we had not heard a whole lot from Kelsey on what happened until now.
Grammar just sat down with CNN's Piers Morgan for what was really an emotional interview. He covered his politics and his past and Kelsey, of course, being best known as TV's Frasier Crane pulled no punches in talking about his ex.
He reveals to Piers that he believes Camille married him for his celebrity. Check out what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KELSEY GRAMMER, ACTOR: The "Real Housewives" was my parting gift for her. Now whether or not it worked out well for her, it doesn't matter. It was my way of saying, look, you wanted to be famous, here you go.
PIERS MORGAN, HOST, CNN "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT": Do you think she married you because you were Kelsey Grammer, TV icon.
GRAMMER: I think she married me because I was Frasier.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: So, Kelsey and Camille were married for 14 years. He says he has now found true love with his fourth wife, Kate, but I do have to say, Kyra, having spent sometime getting to know Camille over the past couple of years, it's an easy bet she's not pleased today with what Kelsey is saying.
PHILLIPS: Yes, I can understand. All right, Susan Sarandon is facing some criticism over some comments that she made about the pope.
HAMMER: Yes, she called Pope Benedict XVI, a Nazi. This happened at the Hampton's Film Festival over the weekend in New York. Well, that naturally got her in religious crosshairs. Sarandon reportedly told an interviewer at the festival that she sent the pope a copy of the anti-death penalty book "Dead Man Walking."
She, of course, starred in the 1995 film adaptation of that book. Now clarifying which pope she sent the book to, Sarandon said the last one, not this Nazi one we have now. Apparently, she said that more than once according to reports.
And that of course, outraged Catholics who slammed her and on Monday, Jewish leaders joined the Catholic groups with the anti-defamation blasting the actress and they're demanding that she apologize.
I want to read what the ADL said in a statement on its web site, Ms. Sarandon may have her differences with the Catholic Church, but that is no excuse for throwing around Nazi analogies. Such words are hateful, vindictive and only serve to diminish the true history and meaning of the holocaust.
The ADL also called Sarandon's comments deeply disturbing, deeply offensive and completely uncalled for. We have reached out to Sarandon's reps on one. We have not heard back yet, Kyra. We will, of course, keep you posted because we have not heard the last on this.
PHILLIPS: All right, A.J., final question, OK. It is Tuesday, that means we have a "Dancing with the Stars" update.
HAMMER: Yes, it was a fun night last night, '80s night on week five of ABC's hit reality show. So here we are at the halfway point. Retro was the theme last night. It was a lot of fun to watch with big hair, shoulder pads, leg warmers and the bangles as well.
Jay Martinez hit the top of the leader board. Great dance, the judges loved him. Our own Nancy Grace danced a rumba to "True" by Spandau Ballet. She got some really nice comments from the panel as well.
And of course, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" was right there backstage with Nancy who was telling us how all this dancing is really turning her into the incredible shrinking prosecutor. Listen to what she told us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NANCY GRACE, HOST, "NANCY GRACE": Actually, since yesterday they had to take this in again. Isn't that crazy?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: So I don't think she had any idea, Kyra, number one that she would get so fit by doing this, but number two we would be at the halfway mark and she would still be on the show. So now she told me last week she's feeling more pressure than she was back at the beginning.
PHILLIPS: Nancy is one that handles pressure very well. The incredible shrinking prosecutor, I can see that as her next book, A.J. We'll keep following her moves. Thanks.
All right, if you want everything breaking in the entertainment world, A.J. has got it every night "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" on HLN at 11:00 p.m. The candidates are getting ready for tonight's big GOP debate in Las Vegas. John McCain told Rick Perry to get some rest. We're going to find out what advice our "Political Buzz" panel wants to give the candidates right after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Checking top stories now, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Tripoli today. She's meeting with Libyan leaders and plans to offer U.S. medical help for those wounded in fighting with Gadhafi loyalists.
President Obama is on a second day of his bus tour in North Carolina and Virginia. The president is pushing his jobs package, but Republicans blast the trip as a taxpayer funded re-election swing.
And Gilad Shalit, an Israeli held by militants for more than five years is a free man. Israel swapped more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners for Shalit today. Well, doctors --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MICHAEL OREN, ISRAELI AMBASSADOR TO U.S.: Those kids have to know that if God forbid anything happens to them, if they are captured or worse, the state will do anything in its power to get them back and that strengthens us.
That has strengthened us since the day of Israel' creation 63 years ago. We have had similar exchanges in the past after the 1967 six-day war. We exchanged over 6,000 Arab prisoners for two Israeli pilots. That type of commitment to our children who vow to defend our country has enabled us to remain strong in the face of terror.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Shalit is in good health at this point. Kevin Flower in Jerusalem for us now. Kevin, tell us exactly what's going on in Gaza City?
KEVIN FLOWER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, right now, Kyra, there are tens of thousands of Gazans on the street of Gaza City in preparation for a celebratory event welcoming these hundreds of prisoners who made it back into the Gaza Strip this morning.
Now, several hundred prisoners are going to the Gaza Strip. They were met initially at the Rafa crossing by a smaller ceremony. They were met by the Hamas prime minister. And these prisoners are being greeted as concurring heroes in a way.
And we saw something similar happening in the West Bank as well where a slightly lesser number of prisoners were released, but still over 100, and they made their way ultimately to the political capital where they were greeted in person one by one by the Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
It is interesting to note that President Abbas and then the Hamas party in Gaza, they're both trying to capitalize on the political fortunes of these prisoners being released. And we actually saw Abbas speaking to the assembled Palestinians alongside West Bank Hamas political figures stressing unity between the two parties.
Now, it is worth noting to our viewers that these two parties Fattah in the West Hank and Hamas in the Gaza Strip have been bitter opponents for many years and unable to reconcile political differences. At least publicly they are saying this prisoner release is a chance for them to sort of bury the collective hatchet -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, it's going to be fascinating to see how things develop with regard to the peace process. Our Jerusalem Bureau Chief, Kevin Flower with perspective from Gaza this morning. Kevin, thanks.
The "Political Buzz" your rapid fire a look at the best political topics of the day. Three questions, 30 seconds on the clock. Playing today, Democratic National Committee member Robert Zimmerman, Georgetown University's Chris Messler and founder and editor of Citizen Jane Politics, Patricia Murphy.
First question, guys, Jon Huntsman passes on tonight's biggest debate to campaign in New Hampshire, smart move or beginning of the end. Robert?
ROBERT ZIMMERMAN, DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE MEMBER: Well, Kyra, Jon Huntsman was only relevant to political pundits and members of the media with too much time on their hands. Obviously, he's trying to upstage his competitors in New Hampshire by not participating in the Las Vegas debate. The problem is based upon his past debate performances, how will anyone know if he's there or not?
PHILLIPS: Chris?
CHRIS METZLER, PROF. GEORGETOWN UNIV. SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES: Well, there are a couple of things. I think what he's doing he's demonstrating that he has a good grasp of the obvious. The fat lady has sung at this point. So, it would have been better for him to simply issue a statement saying I'm out of the race, because at the end of the day, he's done, stick a fork in him.
PHILLIPS: Patricia.
(LAUGHTER)
PATRICIA MURPHY, FOUNDER & EDITOR, CITIZEN JANE POLITICS: Well, I would say, this is exactly what Jon Huntsman needs to do, but it's not the beginning of the end. It is really over for Jon Huntsman. He is literally polling at zero percent. That is lower than the margin of error. It's mostly people who don't know what the question is.
I think it also ended when he gave his speech in front of the Statue of Liberty. He doesn't have the charisma to get up there. He doesn't have enough money to keep going. He's already lent his campaign $2 million. He's even in debt despite that. So, New Hampshire is the only place he can play. It's the only place where he can kind of jumpstart his campaign with the least investment possible. (BUZZER). It's a good move but he's not going to win.
PHILLIPS: All right. (INAUDIBLE) says on his op-ed on CNN.com today that some candidates claim they were, quote, "called by God to run for president." So, who do you think needs divine intervention? Chris.
METZLER: Well --
(LAUGHTER)
METZLER: First of all, I think it was a bit harsh, but in any event, in terms of divine intervention, I think, at this point, Perry needs divine intervention. He needs to divine intervention because he needs to be absolutely sure that he can do more than just show up at the debates. He kind of reminds me of the debates as some of my students in class who are simply there trying to figure out kind of what grade they're going to get.
And that's pretty much what he's been doing. So, I think he needs divine intervention so he can break away from the pact. (BUZZER). He's not been able to do that.
PHILLIPS: Robert.
ZIMMERMAN: First of all, Elsie's op-ed in CNN.com is a must-read for everyone from every political background.
It's a great, great piece, but the reality here is that after watching all these Republican presidential candidates sit silently by while a soldier was booed by members of the Republican debate audience because of his sexual orientation or watching these same candidates either hide from the issue of religious bigotry or exploit it during this campaign or watch them, for that matter, sit silently while members of the Republican audience cheered over people not getting health insurance and dying -- (BUZZER) --
I think they need very divine (ph) intervention. They need to understand the constitution, and they need a conscience.
PHILLIPS: Patricia.
MURPHY: Well, I think that Mitt Romney needs divine intervention. He literally needs a religious intervention. There are about 44 percent of evangelicals making up these Republican voters. Forty-two percent of those said they would never vote for a Mormon. He needs something to change that dynamic.
There's almost no way for Mitt Romney to get around this dynamic with the evangelical voters without literally some sort of divine intervention. So, if anybody needs it, I'd say it's Mitt Romney right now.
PHILLIPS: All right. Here we go, guys. Your buzzer beater. Twenty seconds each on this one. John McCain gave Rick Perry some device ahead of tonight's, quote, "get some rest." Picking a candidate, and in 20 seconds, give them your piece of advice for tonight. Patricia. MURPHY: Oh, I would say to Herman Cain, get ready, because people are going to come after him. They're going to come after his 9-9-9 plan. They're going to come after everything he said about an electrified fence, about what to do about Social Security. He needs to get to ready. He needs a transition from being a radio personality to a legitimate presidential candidate. Tonight is the night for him.
PHILLIPS: Robert.
ZIMMERMAN: Not too many Republican candidates call on me for advice, but my advice would be for Herman Cain.
(LAUGHTER)
ZIMMERMAN: Very frankly, my advice would be after his very pathetic attempt at humor and after issuing statements two years ago denouncing his own 9-9-9 plan, I would say fire your comedy writers. Stop relying on your book publicist as your top policy advisor. These are serious times, and we need some serious discussions about the issues. (BUZZER)
PHILLIPS: All right. Chris, bring us home.
METZLER: OK. So, for Michele Bachmann, your base is leaving you rapidly. So, at this point, you've got to go after Herman Cain tonight. You've got to go after him very hard. You have to kind of take a Margaret Thatcher approach here relative to Cain. Go after him with the glove on but ensure that it is, in fact, there's a stinging glove, because -- (BUZZER) -- if you don't, it's going to be the end.
PHILLIPS: I would just envision Margaret Thatcher as an adviser to the GOP.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: Holy cow! That could be interesting.
ZIMMERMAN: That scares me. That would be very effective.
PHILLIPS: Thanks, guys.
METZLER: There you go.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: See you later.
Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange following coffee giants, Starbucks, and talk that it could be dipping into a new business, a little juicy business. Alison.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Exactly. Starbucks always shaking it up. Reportedly now, it's thinking about selling fresh made to order juices. Right now, it is just talk, but Starbucks did hire a former manager from a juice bar here in New York City. So, I know you're scratching your head thinking, why should Starbucks sell juice. Well, why not? Because of global warming.
A Starbucks executive talked to "The Guardian" newspaper telling the newspaper that in 30 years that he sees Starbucks's supply chain for coffee at risk because of global warming. Look at the changing in severe weather we're having, new pests hitting crops. We're already seeing coffee prices on the rise. Just in the past year, take a look at this, coffee prices are up 26 percent.
So, what you see Starbucks is trying to do is diversify and not rely on one thing. And it has been doing this for year. It now offers breakfast, beer and wine, and sells coffee in grocery stores -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. As for the markets, major banks reporting earnings today. Why is that so important?
KOSIK: Well, I mean, like it or not, banks, they are the lifeline of the economy. They keep the money flowing, but, you know, we've been hearing of the slowdown and more layoffs. Today, Goldman Sachs posted its first quarterly loss since the recession.
This, of course, follows warning signs this past week from JPMorgan, CitiGroup, Wells Fargo, but we are watching bank stocks rise probably because we're seeing the bargain hunters get out there because bank stocks have been hit so hard. But IBM is really dragging the market down, down almost five percent. Overall market, shall we say (ph) modest losses with the Dow down about 16 points. One of those mixed kind of days -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. Alison, thanks.
And coming up, Herman Cain just keeps charming them.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he's more like me than anyone else running, and I vote for these steps (ph). I'm going to vote for him.
TUCHMAN: Tell me why do you think he's more like yourself than anyone running.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's a country boy.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Millionaire businessman, former lobbyist, and country boy, Herman Cain has got something for everybody it seems. We'll go in depth next.
And more than $220 billion in one year, that's how much the U.S. paid in excessive drinking costs according to a new study. There's also some surprising news about where the biggest losses come from, just ahead.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Checking top stories cross country now. In Los Angeles thousands of people camping out in a parking lot for free healthcare. They're hoping to get one of 5,000 wristbands that guarantee them to visit, to see a doctor and a dentist. It's a nonprofit organization that's offering the free services for the next four days.
This star-studded performance was in Austin to benefit Central Texas fire victims. Willie Nelson, Dixie Chicks, George Strait, just a few of the singers that came out to support the cause. Organizers hope that the concert will raise $500,000.
And in Springfield, mass, people stopped in their tracks and watched the flash mob perform the classic moves from Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video. Springfield Symphony Hall plan the stunt to promote a show being held later in the week.
Well, all week, we're going in depth on Herman Cain. The GOP candidate has vaulted into the headlines and the hearts of voters. Gary Tuchman takes a closer look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HERMAN CAIN, (R) PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: No more entitlement.
(APPLAUSE)
CAIN: No more entitlement.
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Say this about Herman Cain, he's running a different sort of campaign for the Republican presidential nomination.
CAIN: Instead of a signature on a photograph, I want to be leaving you all something special that I hadn't done all day. (SINGING) Amazing grace will always be --
TUCHMAN: Singing spirituals isn't new for Cain. The Georgia native is a recorded gospel singer and an associate Baptist minister. What is new is his frontrunner status. And now, Cain who has not done much traditional campaigning is beginning to do just that.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's not a politician. He's a businessman, he can get it done.
(APPLAUSE)
TUCHMAN: For the many, the idea that Cain is an outsider is part of his appeal. At Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville, Tennessee, Cain declared he'd like this banner, "Honkies for Herman."
CAIN: I'm sure some of your neighbors and friends and colleagues and family members, you're going to one of those Tea Party rallies? Yes. They're trying to intimidate you to stay home. Well, aren't they a bunch of racists? Well -- when I looked in the mirror this morning, I was Black.
(LAUGHTER)
TUCHMAN: Over the weekend, Cain barnstormed through Tennessee, attending six rallies.
(on-camera) There are fewer than 20,000 people who live here in Humphreys County, Tennessee. Yet, this turnout is huge, particularly for an area where people (ph) live.
CAIN: All of a sudden, the lone shot isn't such a long shot anymore.
(APPLAUSE)
CAIN: How about them apples?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I like Romney, and if he gets the nomination, I'll support him. But I think that Herman Cain is more in touch with what the people want.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He seems to be a straight hooter and just like some of the conservative views that he's putting out there.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think he's more like me than anyone else running, and I vote for these steps (ph). I'm going to vote for him.
TUCHMAN: Tell me why you think he's more like yourself than anyone running?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's a country boy.
TUCHMAN: A lot of people are telling us they like you because you're plain spoken, a man of the people. At 76, they said that about another George (ph) by name of Jimmy Carter.
CAIN: Yes.
TUCHMAN: Any comparison that you see there?
CAIN: No comparison at all.
TUCHMAN: Cain, instead, likes to compare himself to Ronald Reagan and talks about the shining city on a hill and sees himself as an economic savior.
CAIN: It's called the 9-9-9 plan!
(APPLAUSE)
TUCHMAN: Cain's 9-9-9 tax plan is also now a Madison Avenue style catch phrase.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I like the 9-9-9 plan, especially with the sales tax part of it.
TUCHMAN: Herman Cain says he's in it to win it.
(SINGING) TUCHMAN: As he tries to get those who doubt the viability of his candidacy to change their tune.
(SINGING)
CAIN: I love you.
(APPLAUSE)
TUCHMAN: Gary Tuchman, CNN, Waverly, Tennessee.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Well, tonight, live on CNN, Republican candidates for president go head-to-head in Vegas. The western Republican presidential debate at 8:00 eastern right here on CNN.
I mean, drinking is a pretty hefty price tag. A new government report says it costs $746 for every man, woman, and child in the U.S. In 2006, that cost totaled $223 billion. Losses in workplace productivity account for 72 percent of the cost. Health care expenses from excessive drinking come to 11 percent. Other loss has calculated include law enforcement expenses and motor vehicle crashes.
More heartbreak after the death of a beloved IndyCar driver. The owner of Dan Wheldon's team says he may not be able to go on. And a NASCAR driver is raising some serious safety questions.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, the family is shaken and the racing world is still reeling over the death of Dan Wheldon. Our Don Riddell is following that story from London -- Don.
DON RIDDELL, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, thanks very much. This is a tragic story. Of course, and they'd even sadder when you hear about this. It's emerged that on Saturday night just before this tragic accident in Las Vegas that Dan Wheldon and his wife, Suzie, went to a tattoo parlor so they could get each other's initials tattooed onto their wrists.
And given how powerful social media is these days, this picture has emerged because a man called Mark Waters (ph) met the couple in the tattoo parlor. And following his death the following afternoon, on Sunday, he then sent that image to Dan's sister, Holly, saying, I met them both while getting tattoos. Both so full of life. I'm very sorry.
This is, of course, Kyra, a tragedy for the entire motor sport community, but it's really a tragedy for the family. Dan's father, Clive, has been speaking about the family's loss.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLIVE WHELDON, FATHER: Daniel was born to be a racer, and yesterday, left us doing what he loved to do. He was a true champion and a gentleman on and off the track. Words cannot describe how much our family will miss him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
RIDDELL: Kyra, the coroner has delivered his verdict on the cause of death. So, we now know Dan Wheldon died from head injuries within an hour of that accident.
PHILLIPS: And now, so many more questions being asked about safety.
RIDDELL: Absolutely. There's quite a lot of anger and a lot of questions being asked about why the race was able to happen in the way it was. And NASCAR -- I'm sorry, IndyCar's safety record really is being called into question with seven deaths now in the last 15 years. Worst pointing out (ph) that the NASCAR star, Jimmy Johnson, is saying that, perhaps, IndyCar should cease racing on oval circuits, which are incredibly fast.
And today, the owner of Dan Wheldon's team, Sam Schmidt, who himself was paralyzed in a racing incident a few years ago, he recovered and was able to run that team, but he says he is now considering walking away from IndyCar, because he just doesn't want to be associated with tragic incidents like this.
PHILLIPS: Don, I know you said NASCAR was like a slip of the tongue, but you know what, when Dale Earnhardt died, we saw all the changes that were made with regard to the helmets. And there was a lot of criticism out there about how he died and the impact that that made on the sport and safety, so we probably will see changes within the Indy series.
RIDDELL: Well, you would hope so. I mean, it does require a real commitment on the part of everybody within the sport. It costs money, and IndyCar is an event. It's a sport that has been struggling financially in recent years. So, we would hope that they have the money to be able to look at it, but I think there will be a lot of pressure on IndyCar to make some changes.
PHILLIPS: We'll follow it, Don. Thanks.
Well, if your Blackberry was among the millions that shut down in that massive outage last week, then, you'll want to stick around for the next story. Blackberry has a peace offering for you in the form of free stuff.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: All right. Happening right now, are these live pictures or not, you guys? They are. OK. We got live pictures coming into us. The helicopter just landed that's carrying Gilad Shalit who's now back in his hometown for the first time in more than five years. He and his family left the Tel Nof Air Base just about half an hour ago.
His hometown is in Northern Israel. We were talking to our Fred Pleitgen earlier. That everybody has been gathering there to welcome him back. You remember that Shalit was freed earlier today in exchange for the release of more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners. He was the Israeli soldier that was taken in by the Hamas five years ago.
Negotiations have been discussed. A prisoner swap deal had been discussed a number of times, and it finally happened, as you know, within the past couple of weeks. Those discussions coming to ahead today. The release has finally happened.
Live pictures once again coming into us from Northern Israel. The helicopter where we will see Gilad Shalit disembark any moment now. Our Fred Pleitgen is there, and we'll bring it to you live.
All right. We're going to get the latest from Las Vegas as well just about nine hours ahead of tonight's GOP debate.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: All right. Just about nine hours from now, the leading Republican candidates will face off in a CNN presidential debate. One candidate who is struggling to keep up will not be there, by the way. Senior political editor, Mark Preston, in Vegas. Mark, tell us about Jon Huntsman and his decision to boycott the debate.
MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, Kyra, you know, some will call it the Hail Mary pass. Jon Huntsman, the former governor of Utah, just right next door to here in Nevada, is going to be in New Hampshire. He's taking his whole presidential campaign on trying to win the New Hampshire primary. He thinks that if he can do that, it will spring board him on as more primaries are held.
Now, Jon Huntsman made the decision not to appear here at the debate, at the Venetian, because of a dispute between Nevada and New Hampshire over when they could schedule their caucuses. He said that he wants to stay in solidarity with New Hampshire. He will not appear here in Nevada. It has upset state officials, but you know what, they say they don't care.
They have seven other candidates who'll be on stage, including frontrunner, Mitt Romney and, of course, Herman Cain, who has come out of nowhere in the past couple of weeks to really become a force right now in the Republican presidential primary -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right. So, Mark, speaking of caucus dates, Iowa has made a decision, too, correct?
PRESTON: They have. They will now hold their caucuses on January 3rd. This is the date that they held it back in 2008. What does this mean? It means that the candidates will have very little time now to spend with their families over Christmas, maybe Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and they will be are back out on the campaign trail.
So, Iowa will now hold their caucuses on the third. Here in Nevada, they'll hold their caucuses on the 14th. And then, down in South Carolina, their primary will be on the 21st. The big question mark right now, Kyra, is when does New Hampshire hold their primary? A very important primary.
The secretary of state up in New Hampshire says that he could potentially hold that in December. If that is the case, all bets are off about how this primary process and how they're going to choose the Republican presidential nominee is all up in the air -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: All right, mark, we'll be watching, of course. And don't forget, live tonight on CNN, the Republican candidates for president going head-to-head in Las Vegas. The western Republican presidential debate, 8:00 eastern right here on CNN. It's going to be a big night.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. You and I need to stay up late, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: That's right.
MALVEAUX: We're usually in our bed very early.
PHILLIPS: That's why we got to know we're talking about, right?
MALVEAUX: Yes, we'll take some that.
PHILLIPS: We'll do it together with a little extra coffee. There we go.
MALVEAUX: All right. Thanks, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: You bet.
MALVEAUX: Live from Studio 7, I'm Suzanne Malveaux. I want to get you up to speed for Tuesday, October 18th.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX (voice-over): Huge crowd gets loose in Gaza City after Israel freed more than 470 Palestinian prisoners today. Israel is supposed to release another 500 soon.
So what are you watching? It is raw emotion at the Gaza border crossing, mothers reuniting with their sons who have been locked up for years. Israel gave up the Palestinian prisoners to get back one soldier.
Hamas militants held Gilad Shalit for more than five years. Well, they turned him over to Egypt today. The young soldier now is back with his family in Israel.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GILAD SHALIT, FREED ISRAELI SOLDIER (through translator): I hope that this deal will help to achieve peace between the Palestinian and the Israeli sides, and this would help support the cooperation between the two sides.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: So you're looking at live pictures there from Shalit's hometown in Israel. There is a crowd that's gathered there to welcome him home after five years in captivity.
