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Young, Conservative And Concerned; North Carolina Bus Driver Saves Kids; Sex, Politics And The Church; Interview With Kathleen Sebelius; Obama Speaks About Revamping Birth Control Rule; Conservatives Slam Contraceptive Deal; Preaching To the Party Faithful

Aired February 10, 2012 - 12:00   ET

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


DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: All right, everyone. Fasten your seat belts. Whole lot of news going on today at the top of the hour. I'm Don Lemon. I want to get you up to speed right now.

You know, his rivals have been calling it a war on religion. Now the president appears ready to walk back a new policy that would have made Catholic institutions responsible for their employees' birth control costs.

Today after weeks of political pressure, a big turnaround to tell you about. We're waiting to hear from the president himself at any moment. That's why you're seeing live pictures of the White House. We're going to bring that to you live. As soon as he walks out, should happen at 12:15. He often walks out earlier. We'll get to it as soon as it happens.

So let's talk about the politics and the fallout over contraceptive coverage. Wolf Blitzer joins us now live, along with our chief White House correspondent, Jessica Yellin, and our senior congressional correspondent, Dana Bash.

Jessica, we're going to go to you first. The Obama administration has come up with a compromise. What do you know about it? What can you tell us?

JESSICA YELLIN, CHIEF WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: The compromise effectively, Don, means that women who work at religiously oriented organizations still get full contraception coverage, but their employers do not have to pay for it, so that the Catholic hospitals and Catholic universities will not have to actually have coverage that they're paying for provide birth control.

But the women there get it. And the workaround is that the administration is compelling insurance companies to provide the coverage themselves. So the burden will now be on the insurance companies.

So far, liberal Catholic organizations or left-leaning Catholic organizations are applauding the decision. And there is silence from the more conservative Catholics.

I can tell you that the president made calls to the head of Planned Parenthood, the head of a religious Catholic organization that's left-leaning, and both of those groups came out applauding the decision. He also called Archbishop Dolan of D.C., who has not issued a statement yet, Don.

LEMON: Very interesting. You talked about conservative Catholics. Is the Obama campaign just concerned that this would hurt him with Catholic voters, and do they think this will repair any damage?

YELLIN: Frankly, no. I mean, the bottom line on this one is that the politics of it have caused a lot of drama. But it actually is kind of helpful among certain key demographics, women voters, young voters and certain blocks of liberal Catholic voters.

And their thinking is that this compromise, if it quiets down the media drama, could actually help them out in the end, because it's energized certain blocks and the people who were conservative Catholics weren't going to vote for the president in their analysis in the end anyway, Don.

LEMON: All right, Jessica Yellin, stand by. As you said, we're waiting for the president to come out shortly here. We'll carry it for you live. To Wolf Blitzer now.

Wolf, I know what you think. I spoke to you last hour and I don't want to put words in your mouth. But you said -- you -- it's fair to say that this was handled poorly, at least in your estimation. Did the administration wait too long to try and resolve this issue?

WOLF BLITZER, HOST, CNN'S "THE SITUATION ROOM": I think they should have worked all of this out long before Kathleen Sebelius, the secretary of Health and Human Services, made her announcement a couple weeks ago of this new policy that would give basically these Catholic institutions like universities, hospitals, charities that employ a lot of people, a year in which there would be a grace period in which the new policy for everyone else would go into effect.

They should have really worked this out in advance. They knew there would be opposition from the Catholic bishops across the country. And I think they could have finessed it in a better way. There was a fierce debate.

I don't know, fierce maybe is not the right word, but a significant debate within the White House itself on this policy, including some of the top Catholics in the Obama administration, like the vice president, Joe Biden; the former White House chief of staff, Bill Daley and some others who were saying, you know what, Mr. President? Maybe we shouldn't go this far and force these religious institutions to do this.

The president, though, sided with many of the women who were saying to him, you know what? You've got to do this. You can't discriminate against women who work for institutions that have nothing to do with a religion like the Catholic Church and other women. All the women have to get this benefit. No co-pay for birth control pills, for contraceptions across the board. And so there was a significant debate. The president sided with the women. Now he's going to have to come out and clarify and come up with this new policy.

My own sense is that they probably would have been so much better off over these past two weeks if they had just resolved it, then announced two weeks ago what the president is going to announce today, and work with the Catholic Church, work with others who were concerned, because now the Republicans, whether it's Mitt Romney or --

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Seizing on it.

BLITZER: -- Rick Santorum or Newt Gingrich, they have a huge issue, and they're going to be continuing to say this is a president who has a war on religion. Rick Perry, the governor of Texas, when he was a Republican presidential candidate, he was always saying that this president has a war on religion. And this was supposedly an issue that would have reinforced that.

LEMON: Yes, and you know, Wolf, Dana's going to talk a little bit more about that. But one of the -- perhaps the leading woman voice on this is the Health and Human Services secretary, Kathleen Sebelius. And she is going to join me here shortly after the president speaks.

As soon as the president comes on, he's going to talk. We'll carry it for you live. And then Kathleen Sebelius will join us to answer some of those questions.

BLITZER: Yes, ask her, ask her, Don, when you get a chance, ask her why didn't they make this compromise, this -- what the president is announcing today and all these -- the new policy, why didn't they do that two weeks ago when she announced the policy?

LEMON: Writing it down now. Two weeks ago announce the policy. I got it. I'll ask that for you, Wolf.

BLITZER: If she's watching us right now, she'll have some time to prepare her answer.

LEMON: All right, Wolf. Stand by. We'll be getting back to you, no worries.

And now I want to go back to Dana Bash and talk a little bit more about what Wolf Blitzer was talking about. The Republican candidates pounced on this, calling it a war on religion, as you heard Wolf say, Dana. Will they continue to get political mileage out of this controversy? They're already seizing on it.

DANA BASH, SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Oh, I guarantee that they're not going to stop seizing on it. In fact, as you were talking to Wolf, I literally just got a text back with one of Rick Santorum's top aides, who was with him over at the CPAC conference here in Washington. And his response was "Shifting the burden to the insurers is not the point. Taking our freedom is." And that, I think, pretty much sums up why Republican candidates in particular feel like that they got so much, as you put it, mileage out of it.

Listen to what Rick Santorum said this morning on this issue before he knew about this compromise.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FORMER SEN. RICK SANTORUM, R-PA., PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Ladies and gentlemen, this is the kind of coercion that we can expect. It's not about contraception. It's about economic liberty. It's about freedom of speech. It's about freedom of religion. It's about government control of your lives, and it's got to stop.

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BASH: So you hear there, I just want to add to what Wolf said. Wolf said that the Republican candidates are making this about the president having a war on religion. That is absolutely true. But in addition to that what they have been saying is this is another example of President Obama putting the heavy hand of government on our liberties.

And as several Republican strategists I've talked to today say, that this really helped them put into focus the whole idea that they have been trying to get across even to some independent voters, that during the Obama administration, there has just been too many mandates, whether it's on health care in general or something as specific as contraceptive care.

And I just add to that, we're talking about the presidential field on Capitol Hill, where they're probably not going to let go of this either.

One of the top Republicans in the Senate, Roy Blunt, he tweeted out this morning that unless President Obama is reversing the mandate, there is no compromise when it comes to freedom. Roy Blunt is not only a Republican leader in the Senate, he also happens to be the liaison for Mitt Romney in Congress.

LEMON: All right. Dana Bash standing by in Washington. Jessica Yellin standing by in Washington. Wolf Blitzer standing by as well. Thank you very much.

And we're standing by for the president to speak at any moment now on that controversial contraception ruling, expected to walk some of it back. The president's going to speak. Kathleen Sebelius, the Health and Human Services secretary going to join us right after that.

And right now in Washington, Republican activists are gathered at the Conservative Political Action Conference known as CPAC. You're looking at live pictures right here on CNN. Mitt Romney goes before the crowd this hour, and we'll bring it to you live for sure. And earlier they heard Rick Santorum make his pitch. He's telling conservatives -- you heard Dana Bash, who talked to us just moments ago. They don't have to compromise on their principles to win the White House. More of Rick Santorum right now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SANTORUM: Ladies and gentlemen, as President of the United States, we will surround ourselves in this administration with people who share our values, who are committed to the principles that made this country great, leaders of the conservative movement.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Find out what conservative activists are hoping to hear from the presidential candidates. I'm going to talk to a couple of young Republicans at the CPAC conference coming up at the bottom of the hour here on CNN.

Live pictures of the White House now. Back pedaling on a controversial new policy -- this is the Briefing Room -- that has the Catholic Church crying foul. The president expected to come out at any moment. We're going to dig deeper into the birth control debate, hear from the president himself about the new plan. Don't go anywhere. You'll hear it all.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Welcome back, everyone. We're following developing news. Here, let's get a live picture now of the Briefing Room, because that's where the president is going to speak. There's a live picture of the White House as well.

White House about to walk back a controversial policy, at least parts of it, that would have forced Catholic institutions to pay for their employees' birth control. More like a revision, you can call it, is what we're expecting.

That didn't go over well with Catholic leaders, the initial announcement of that ruling two weeks ago. And the Republicans pounced on that. We're waiting to hear from president live at any minute now about this new compromise, this new revision. And we're going to bring that to you live.

Standing by to talk about it, folks here who know everything about politics. Our chief White House correspondent, Jessica Yellin, and Wolf Blitzer as well.

So, Wolf, let's talk about this, because it's a precarious position for the president, as you have been saying, in an election year. Swing voters, women, conservative Christians or just Christians in general, who may not -- who may not like this ruling. And now he's having to revise it or walk some parts of it back.

BLITZER: Yes. And that's the politically sort of embarrassing thing. They should have worked all of this out long before the announcement a couple weeks ago. They should have made sure that they explained fully to the Catholic bishops, they heard all of the concerns.

They -- this has been well known for months and months that they were going to have to make a very sensitive decision. And as I pointed out, there was a significant debate within the White House, what to do, and various forces were pretty ardent on this.

The president sided with those who said, you know what? They're going to have to go forward with it, give a grace period of a year for these Catholic institutions like universities and hospitals, Catholic charities, to sort things out.

But that, you know, that really created a firestorm. You know, it's rare that you hear these Catholic bishops across the country, not only here in Washington, but in New York and California, go out there and really say this is totally, totally unacceptable.

LEMON: All in unison.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: All in unison.

BLITZER: Oh, yes. I mean, they were so adamant. And the last thing the president in his re-election campaign needs right now is the Catholic bishops and the Catholic hierarchy, the Catholic Church on his back saying, you know, you're forcing us to violate some of our basic principles as Catholics. And that's not a good situation for an incumbent president seeking re-election to begin.

LEMON: Yes. I don't mean to cut you off, but I want to -- we got the two-minute warning about a minute ago, and I wanted to get Jessica in before the president comes out, because, Jessica, you're there covering the White House. What has the sense been like, what has the mood been like? Do you know, did they feel it at the White House that, oh, we did -- this wasn't handled so well?

YELLIN: They know they botched this one, Don. I mean, they -- look, what they didn't do -- and I know this not from -- only from inside the White House, but from talking to religious leaders on the outside, is they didn't do the normal outreach that is supposed to come along with this sort of announcement.

They knew this was going to be controversial. And they sort of assumed it would be baked in. And so they'll sort of take their lumps. And what they needed to do is exactly what Wolf said, outreach, build support, figure it out in advance. And they just didn't do it.

And the White House, you know, now you'll hear the president come out and essentially say this process --

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: Jessica, I have to cut you off. Here comes the President of the United States.

(BEGIN LIVE SPEECH)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That's pretty good. Hello, everybody. I was actually going to say good morning. But I guess it's afternoon by now.

As part of the health care reform law that I signed last year, all insurance plans are required to cover preventive care at no cost. That means free check-ups, free mammograms, immunizations and other basic services.

We fought for this because it saves lives and it saves money, for families, for businesses, for government, for everybody. And that's because it's a lot cheaper to prevent an illness than to treat one.

We also accepted a recommendation from the experts at the Institute of Medicine that when it comes to women, preventive care should include coverage of contraceptive services such as birth control. In addition to family planning, doctors often prescribe contraception as a way to reduce the risks of ovarian and other cancers and treat a variety of different ailments.

And we know that the overall cost of health care is lower when women have access to contraceptive services. Nearly 99 percent of all women have relied on contraception at some point in their lives -- 99 percent. And yet more than half of all women between the ages of 18 and 34 have struggled to afford it.

So for all these reasons, we decided to follow the judgment of the nation's leading medical experts and make sure that free preventive care includes access to free contraceptive care. Whether you're a teacher or a small businesswoman or a nurse or a janitor, no woman's health should depend on who she is or where she works or how much money she makes.

Every woman should be in control of the decisions that affect her own health -- period. This basic principle is already the law in 28 states across the country. Now, as we move to implement this rule, however, we've been mindful that there's another principle at stake here, and that's the principle of religious liberty, an inalienable right enshrined in our Constitution.

As a citizen and Christian, I cherish this right. In fact, my first job in Chicago was working with Catholic parishes in poor neighborhoods and my salary was funded by a grant from an arm of the Catholic Church.

And I saw that local churches often did more good for a community than a government program ever could. So I know how important the work that faith-based organizations do, and how much impact they can have in their communities.

I also know that some religious institutions, particularly those affiliated with the Catholic Church, have a religious objection to directly providing insurance that covers contraceptive services for their employees. That's why we originally exempted all churches from this requirement, an exemption, by the way, that eight states didn't already have.

And that's why from the very beginning of this process, I spoke directly to various Catholic officials, and I promised that, before finalizing the rule as it applied to them, we would spend the next year working with institutions like Catholic hospitals and Catholic universities to find an equitable solution that protects religious liberty and ensures that every woman has access to the care that she needs.

Now, after the many genuine concerns that have been raised over the last few weeks, as well as, frankly, the more cynical desire on the part of some to make this into a political football, it became clear that spending months hammering out a solution was not going to be an option, that we needed to move this faster.

So last week I directed the Department of Health and Human Services to speed up the process that had already been envisioned. We weren't going to spend a year doing this. We were going to spend a week or two doing this.

Today we've reached a decision on how to move forward. Under the rule, women will still have access to free preventive care. That includes contraceptive services, no matter where they work. So that core principle remains.

But if a woman's employer is a charity or a hospital that has a religious objection to providing contraceptive services as part of their health plan, the insurance company, not the hospital, not the charity, will be required to reach out and offer the woman contraceptive care free of charge, without copays and without hassles.

The results will be that religious organizations won't have to pay for these services, and no religious institution will have to provide these services directly. Let me repeat: these employers will not have to pay for or provide contraceptive services.

But women who work at these institutions will have access to free contraceptive services just like other women. And they'll no longer have to pay hundreds of dollars a year that could go towards paying the rent or buying groceries.

Now, I've been confident from the start that we could work out a sensible approach here, just as I promised. I understand some folks in Washington may want to treat this as another political wedge issue. But it shouldn't be. I certainly never saw it that way.

This is an issue where people of goodwill on both sides of the debate have been sorting through some very complicated questions to find a solution that works for everyone. With today's announcement, we've done that. Religious liberty will be protected, and a law that requires free preventive care will not discriminate against women.

Now, we live in a pluralistic society, where we're not going to agree on every single issue or share every belief. That doesn't mean that we have to choose between individual liberty and basic fairness for all Americans.

We are unique among nations for having been founded upon both these principles. And our obligation as citizens is to carry them forward. I have complete faith that we can do that. Thank you very much, everybody.

(END LIVE SPEECH)

LEMON: All right, the president there with Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius at his side. She's going to join us in just a couple minutes here on CNN, by the way. The president laid it out. Wolf, Dana, Jessica, all standing by.

And it's interesting, Wolf, you said they could have done this a few weeks ago if they worked it out. You did hear the president, Wolf, saying, you know, I talked to several Catholic organizations and we tried to talk this out when we went into trying to figure out exactly what to do with this, and he said, I spoke with them. And he made it known.

But the president is saying any women, still, any woman who wants contraceptive services, who wants preventative care, they will get it and they won't be charged for it, no co-pay, the carrier has to make up the difference if they work for an organization that's opposed to this.

BLITZER: It'll be interesting now, Don, to see how the Catholic hierarchy, the Catholic bishops like the Bishop Dolan and others react.

The keyword that the president said was "directly," that these Catholic institutions that run these hospitals or these universities or Catholic charities, for example, they won't directly have to provide these contraceptive benefits, the birth control benefits, no co-pay, free of charge, to all of the women employees, whoever wants it, women employees of these institutions.

They'll be able to get it indirectly from the health insurance companies that work with these institutions. And we're going to see now if the Catholic leadership, if this is good enough for them.

Does this thread the needle, if you will, in making it clear that the Catholic Church is not going to violate a basic tenet they're opposed to contraceptions, birth control pills, and they don't want to have to pay it, whether or not this is going to satisfy them or it's not going to satisfy them. I'm sure it'll satisfy a lot of liberal Catholic organizations and Catholic institutions and a lot of Catholics out there.

But the question is will it satisfy the Catholic bishops? And we're going to find out pretty soon, I suspect -- and I could be wrong. I suspect they're not going to be happy with this.

LEMON: Yes, and I think you're right, Wolf. We're just getting, you know, the Becket Fund is -- who funded the three lawsuits that have been filed, one of them by the Christian cable news network, EWTN. And then they're calling it already a false compromise on this abortion -- what they call abortion drug mandate.

And I want to go to Jessica now. Jessica, it's not all over but the shouting now. Clearly, the administration has their work to do in cleaning up this even more. As you said, clearly, it was botched.

YELLIN: Yes. There's no doubt about it. And they know that. But their goal here, Don, to be clear, is to get the liberal Catholics, who are usually with them, back with them. I mean, they don't hope to get the people who are their constant objectors won over.

And so there were some columnists in town here who had written screeds against this. And they want to get those op-ed columnists back on their side. And it's their belief that hopefully this will, in their view, do that.

And also, I should point out, their new chief of staff, Jack Lew, is going to be doing all the Sunday shows this Sunday. And they clearly wanted this asked and answered before he had to go out and answer all these questions about it on Sunday. I mean, there are all sorts of political considerations. This is not the issue they want to be discussing now.

The budget comes out next week. There are all sorts of other issues going into a presidential campaign. They'd rather try to address this and get it behind them.

And they're hopeful that having some solution -- and this is very similar to a solution that has worked in Hawaii, and they can say, look, it's worked in other states, and the Catholic Church has been fine with it in other states, so they can get it behind them. We'll see.

LEMON: Let's go -- Dana Bash, let's talk about the lawmakers. You heard -- you heard what Jessica said. Oh, you know, they want to win over some folks. But winning over lawmakers, really on both sides, it's going to be -- it may be difficult for the president because there may be Democrats -- I'm just guessing here -- who may say the president sort of caved a bit.

And then the Republicans are going to say, of course, he should have thought about this again. This is him making a mandate that Americans don't want.

BASH: Exactly. But to Jessica's point about the White House, first and foremost, wanting to get Democrats who are traditionally with him back in the fold, so far that seems to be working. For example, Senator Patrick Leahy of Vermont, he is a Catholic. He was not that thrilled about this. He just put out a statement saying that he's fine with this compromise.

But more broadly, there's no question that Republicans who saw this as a tremendous political gift for them and really seized on it, from their perspective -- and they got a lot of mileage out of it -- they're not going to let this go, not just for political reasons but also they insist for policy reasons, because it is, A, an issue that does gin up the Christian conservative vote, and that is something that Rick Santorum in particular right now is sort of riding the wave of that.

But also, those Tea Party kind of voters, the people who say the government needs to just get off my back, this is perfect for them. And those aren't just Republicans. Those are also independents. And that's the kind of thing that Republicans do not want to let go.

Dana, Jessica, Wolf, I'm so glad you guys were here to help me out. Thank you so much for adding your perspective, your expertise on this.

Wolf, see you in "THE SITUATION ROOM" a little later on. Appreciate all of you. And we're going to have more on this, viewer, because we're going to talk with someone from the Becket Fund, the law firm that challenged the administration's contraceptive mandate. We'll find out how they feel about this compromise.

And also, as I've been saying here, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius is going to join me live.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Conservatives have converged on Washington for one of the most influential gatherings in the country. The Conservative Political Action Conference attracts thousands from around the country, talking about CPAC.

By some estimates 40 percent, 40 percent are college students and more than half are young voters. We don't see that much of them. You're going to see them now. Two of them joining us right now.

Elliot Gaiser and Mary Coran are both college students and young Republicans. Thank you guys so much for joining us. What are you hoping to hear at CPAC? First you, Mary.

MARY CORAN, YOUNG REPUBLICAN: I'm most interested in seeing the candidates speaking and mainly Rick Santorum and to be here to voice my support for him and talk to people about him.

LEMON: Elliott?

ELLIOT GAISER, YOUNG REPUBLICAN: I'm here mainly because I just want to meet people that share my perspective and network with them and try and get, like, you know, this is a national movement. It's good to see people that agree with you from California -- I'm in Michigan. We drove 11 hours to get here.

LEMON: Continue, finish your thought.

CORAN: Sorry, what?

GAISER: No problem. You said earlier, most of the time what you hear is a lot of kind of the older people in Washington. And even when you're here when it's not CPAC, there are not nearly as many young people and young voices as there are today. That's the phenomenal thing here. This is a young movement.

LEMON: Good. Listen, Mary, you mentioned Rick Santorum when you said I'm interested in hearing from Rick Santorum. Have you decided who you want to vote for?

CORAN: Are you asking me if I have decided to vote for Rick Santorum?

LEMON: Yes, or have you decided who you want to vote for? Maybe it's Rick Santorum, maybe it's someone else?

CORAN: OK, well, I'm definitely for Rick Santorum. My Christian beliefs really frame the way I view politics. He most aligns with my biblical world's view and framework.

The way he can craft the conservative message to interconnect or show the necessary connection between social issues and economic issues, I think that's really good for the conservative movement in general. Definitely what we need in a president.

LEMON: Elliott, same question. Have you decided who you want to vote for?

GAISER: I haven't made up my mind quite yet. I like Rick Santorum and what he stands for, but I also like the business background that Romney brings. And Newt Gingrich has a lot of really interesting ideas. And he's able to articulate them in a very unique way. So I haven't really made up my mind. I will by the March 6th primary in Ohio where I'll be voting.

LEMON: I want to thank you both of you, our young voters, Elliott Gaiser, Mary Coran for joining us from the CPAC conference. Thank you. Great to hear your voice. Have a great time, OK.

CORAN: Thank you.

GAISER: Thank you very much, Don.

LEMON: Be sure to stay with us for Mitt Romney's speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference. It happens just a few minutes from now at 12:55 p.m. Eastern Time. We're going to bring that to you live right here on CNN.

The White House ready to compromise, but there's no end in sight yet for the political circus surrounding a deeply controversial birth control policy.

I'm going to talk with Kathleen Sebelius about what the new deal means for the president and for American women.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: A horror scene on a neighborhood street in North Carolina. Just look at it. That school bus somehow caught fire and seconds later it exploded. Yes, there were children onboard.

Yes, there was a driver on board as well. That bus driver quickly got all the kids a safe distance away. Today, they call her hero. Lindora Richardson talked to CNN's Ashleigh Banfield and Zoraida Sambolin this morning.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

LINDORA RICHARDSON, DRIVER WHO SAVED CHILDREN FROM BUS FIRE (via telephone): I feel like I was doing my job. It's not being a hero. It's doing my job. This is what I was trying to do and I love it so much. I don't feel like a hero. I was like I was just performing my job.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The Charlotte Fire Department will honor Lindora Richardson next week for her quick thinking and life saving action. Glad they're all OK.

OK, so we've been hearing -- we heard from the president live. You saw the Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius standing next to him. We're going to talk to her life, coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We're following two developing stories here on CNN. They're happening in Washington, but affect the entire country. First up, you heard the president of the United States right here on CNN from the Briefing Room not long ago revise his plan on contraception when it comes to religious organizations.

Here's what the president said. He had to revise it. He said, this is what's new in the plan that's formerly announced. Insurance must offer free coverage to women working at religiously affiliated institutions.

The White House is going to expand the exemption for those universities and hospitals. The original rule said religiously affiliated employers must provide full contraception coverage. The different is now employer will have to directly, directly if they are oppose to this supply.

They'll have to get it. They can get from the insurers now. No co-pay and of course, without question, the president announcing with the Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius who is going to join us in just a few minutes here on CNN as well.

Several lawsuits have been filed, three of them at least. One of them filled by a Christian cable news network, EWTN, all of them, all of them being funded by the Beckett Fund. Luke Goodrich who is with the Beckett Fund is going to join us in just a minute to talk about it.

Beckett Fund already releasing a statement, of course, on the president's revision of this plan. We're going to talk to him, Luke Goodrich and also Kathleen Sebelius coming up.

We'll also we're going to take you live to CPAC as well. We've been covering this. This is really the conservatives' time to shine in Washington. That annual conference going on live. Lots of cover here on CNN, and we have it for you. We're back right after a break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Welcome back, everyone. The president walking back a deeply controversial decision that would have made Catholic institutions responsible for the costs of their employees' birth control.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Everyone should be in control of the decisions that affect her own health, period. This basic principle is already the law in 28 states across the country.

As we move to implement this rule, however, we've been mindful that there's another principle at stake here. And that's the principle of religious liberty, an inalienable right that's enshrined in our constitution. As a citizen and as a Christian, I cherish this right.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: That was a president just moments ago. There you see her live standing on the White House lawn, Secretary of Health and Human Services, Kathleen Sebelius.

She joins us now to talk more about this. Thank you for joining us, Secretary. Are you able to hear me?

KATHLEEN SEBELIUS, SECRETARY OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES: I just lost volume.

LEMON: I think we have an issue. Can you hear me, Secretary?

SEBELIUS: I can now, yes.

LEMON: Thank you so much for joining us today. We appreciate this. Listen, the right has been calling this -- and many people who are -- who are religious here calling it a war on religion. Now after weeks of pressure from the president's rivals, you're changing your minds. Everyone sees this as a politically motivated decision. So why didn't you make this change two weeks ago when you first released this policy?

SEBELIUS: Well, actually, we did announce this opportunity to give religious leaders who currently don't offer contraception coverage an additional year, with the full intention of working with stakeholders, looking at what's happening on the ground with the various catholic institutions in the 28 states who currently offer contraception coverage, and figure out some arrangements that both fulfilled religious liberty and made sure that women had access to this very important preventive services.

We know that 99 percent of women across this country use contraception at some point in their lives. And if it's not as part of their insurance plan, they often are paying hundreds of dollars trying to get this very important health service.

So we announced, from the beginning, that we were going to work with stakeholders. The president, as he said today, given the furor and concern that has developed, just asked us to speed up the process. So we did. And we're pleased to announce that the final rule, which will be published later this afternoon, will include this important balance.

Women will have access, for the first time ever, regardless of where they work, to a critical preventive health benefit identified by the Institute of Medicine, used by 99 percent of the women, and we're respecting the religious freedom of employers who felt that they offering this service directly was in violation of their conscience. We think this is a very good solution moving forward.

LEMON: Secretary, here's a question, because, you know, many are seeing this as, OK, two weeks later the president, having to come back, clarify, walk back, revise, however you want to put it. And there was some concern, we are told, when all of the negotiations were going on and you were talking about it.

There were people who were saying, listen, for swing voters, for religious people, this may cost you some votes. It's going to be controversial. Was there anyone -- was there anyone who, during this time, threw their hands up and said, hey, listen, don't do this, this isn't going to work, we're going to get flak for this?

SEBELIUS: You know, certainly as this whole discussion unfolded, there were lots of viewpoints, lots of stakeholder input. Two hundred thousand comments that we received at our department. Lots of different views.

But at the end of the day, I think the president, and I felt very strongly, that two important principles had to be paramount. One, health benefits to women should not be determined by where she worked or what position she had or how much money she has. That goes on every day in America and that should not be what we're looking forward to in the future.

But, secondly, respecting religious liberty. That's why we said there would be an additional year. That's why we exempted from the outset churches and church-based organizations from this rule altogether. And I think, again, this is a solution that both meets the health mandates for women, the 99 percent of American women who use and access this benefit, and the religious principles of their employers. It's a solution that will make sure that women's preventive health benefits aren't determined by where she works in America any longer.

LEMON: Yes. So, listen, this is a very important issue and I could talk to you about it all day long here. We have a short amount of time here. And so I want to get this next question in, and answer.

A lot of catholic women take birth control, as the president mentioned. In fact, according to the study voted in the "Washington Post," and again, as the president said, about 95 percent of American Catholics say they have used contraceptives. Do you get the sense that the outrage over the original plan was manufactured to hurt the president politically with catholic voters?

SEBELIUS: Oh, I don't think that outside of some of the more cynical political folks who may be either on the campaign trail or inside the beltway, I think the -- a lot of the public outcry was urging us to find an appropriate balance.

Again, when we announced that we were going to finalize this rule, and that's really what we did. Two weeks ago we made a statement that the exemption would stay the same and that we would reach out to stakeholders over the course of a year and find a balance between religious objection and this very important health mandate.

The president said, you've got to speed up that process. And that's just what we're doing.

So, as of the end of today, the rule will be finalized. And, again, we look forward to a day where women can make their own decisions about their own health needs and those for their families and religious employers will be able to not violate what they see as religious objections to this particular service.

LEMON: Secretary Sebelius, thank you so much.

SEBELIUS: Sure. Great to be with you.

LEMON: We want to move on now and talk to Luke Goodrich. He is with the Becket Fund. Several lawsuits have been filed.

Luke, I think it's three. At this point it's three. And your organization has funded them. You released a statement just a short time ago and this is the headline. You said the Obama administration offers false compromise on abortion drug mandate. Talk to me about that.

LUKE GOODRICH, GEN. COUNSEL, BECKET FUND: Well, the president is basically saying, trust me. I really respect conscience. I know we didn't get it right the first time with this rule. I know we didn't get it right the second time. But after the election, I'm going to produce a really good religious exemption that's going to protect everybody. I can't give you the details right now, but just wait until after the election and everybody who has a religious objection will be protected.

And we're basically saying, fool me once, shame on me. But fool me twice, shame on you.

LEMON: Hey, listen, the last question I asked the secretary, and -- which the president also mentioned during his news conference, there's a majority, a small majority, of the -- in polling that says that they like this plan. They want women, even if they work for religious organizations, to have contraception and preventative care. And then there is the -- the study that was quoted in the "Washington Post," that the president mentioned as well, 95 percent of American Catholics say they have used contraceptives. Many have said that this is a manufactured controversy in an election year to make the president look bad. How do you respond to that?

GOODRICH: Well, none of the organizations we represent are trying to stop people from getting contraception. It's already widely available. They're perfectly free to get it anywhere they'd like. But all these religious organizations are asking for is, don't force us to pay with our own funds and provide something that we believe is truly immoral. And that's what the old rule did. And that's what a lot of organizations are still going to be forced to do even after the announcement of this supposed compromise.

LEMON: So there is -- clear of just saying this is -- we don't want to do it, is there anything that would appease your organization or stop the lawsuits? What would?

GOODRICH: Sure. Just allowing any religious organization that has a religious objection to providing or paying for these services and say, if you have religious objection, you don't have to do it. But this supposed new compromise leaves out hundreds, if not thousands, of religious groups. If you self-insure, like our client EWTN does, you're an insurer and you're going to have to be forced to pay it. So you're forced to violate your religious beliefs. A lot of religious individuals who own small businesses are not covered by this supposed compromise. And they're going to be forced to violate their religious beliefs, too.

And at the end of the day, what this supposed compromise really is, is an accounting gimmick. The administration says, you have to provide insurance to your employees and so every religious organization in the country is going to be providing insurance. And then they say, well, it won't be your money that goes to it, it will be the insurance company that will provide it for free. But a lot of religious organizations are going to have a problem with that, too, because it's their money that's buying the insurance and it's their insurance that's going to be providing these services in violation of their religious beliefs.

LEMON: Luke Goodrich is general counsel for the Becket Fund, which is funding the three lawsuits that have happened already, and any others if they come about. Thank you very much. We appreciate you joining us here on CNN.

And you can better believe they're going to be talking about this in Washington at CPAC. The Republicans who are running for president already seizing on it. We're waiting to hear from Mitt Romney. He's going to address that crowd shortly, 12:55 Eastern. We'll have live coverage. Later on this evening, Newt Gingrich. Don't go anymore.

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LEMON: They may be preaching to the converted, but the stakes are high for the Republican presidential candidates today. They're addressing the Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington. It's called CPAC. The crowd heard from Rick Santorum earlier today. Up next, Mitt Romney. Mitt Romney. He speaks in just a few minutes. He should be taking the stage soon. Wolf Blitzer is in Washington, as well as our chief White House correspondent Jessica Yellin.

So, both of you -- first let's go to you, Jessica. Romney is trying to convince conservatives he's the guy. What does he need to say?

YELLIN: He needs to shore up their support by signaling that he's going to share their values and beliefs, not just during this primary season, but if he's elected president. So you need -- he's already signaled that -- is that him live?

LEMON: I think that was him earlier speaking. I'm not getting --

YELLIN: OK. OK. I didn't want to -- so he's -- sorry. He's already signaled that he's going to talk about the contraception issue that you and I and the president has been talking about and show that he is with them on that issue and talk about his economic record and talk about his firm commitment to the sort of religious values and moral values that this community holds. And that he's going to be unwavering in it. You know, Mitt Romney was the conservative alternative, amazingly, to John McCain four years ago in --

LEMON: Right.

YELLIN: You know, it's amazing how four years can make a difference.

LEMON: Right, right, right.

So, Wolf, to you, and I want you to get the final word on this because you're coming up at the top of the hour and -- not at the top of the hour, at 4:00 p.m. And I know you're going to be talking about this a lot. Can Romney regain momentum after this week's losses?

BLITZER: Yes, he certainly can. He's going to do well, there's no doubt about it, in Arizona at the end of the month. I assume he'll do very well in Michigan. His father was once governor of Michigan. George Romney, who himself ran for president at one point. And he was born in Michigan. So I think he'll do well in Arizona and in Michigan.

The stage will then be set for Super Tuesday, March 6th. About a dozen contests on that one day. And that's when Newt Gingrich is expecting to get some momentum because several of those states that compete will be southern states like Georgia, for example. We'll see what happens in Ohio. That's on Super Tuesday as well. Oklahoma.

So it's still anyone's bet who's going to get this Republican nomination. Mitt Romney, I think it's fair to say, he's still the front-runner. But Newt Gingrich is not out of it. And Rick Santorum is doing amazingly well. Got three for three only the other day.

But let's not forget tomorrow night we're going to get the results of the Maine caucuses. And that's some place that Romney should do well. He's from New England. But Ron Paul has been spending quite a bit of time in Maine, and Maine's got an independent streak, a libertarian streak, if you will. So maybe Ron Paul will do well tomorrow night. We'll, of course, have extensive coverage. One more thing before I go. I just want to let our viewers know, I'm going to be speaking with Rick Santorum, 4:00 p.m. Eastern in "The Situation Room." So we'll press him on some of these issues as well.

LEMON: Rick Santorum, 4:00 p.m. eastern in "The Situation Room." And, of course, there's no other interview like a Wolf Blitzer interview. He's going to get the best information out of Rick Santorum.

Jessica Yellin, thank you. Thank you, Jessica. Thank you, Wolf. Enjoyed having you guys. Dana Bash as well. They helped me get through the president's speech there. And you also heard from Kathleen Sebelius. I got Wolf's question in as well.

Thanks to both of you. I'll be watching you in "The Situation Room," Wolf. And be sure to stay with us for Mitt Romney's speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference. It happens at any minute now and we're going to bring it to you live here on CNN.

In the meantime, the CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Miss Ashleigh Banfield in New York. Ashleigh, take it away.

ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: That's just the nicest handover ever, Don Lemon. Thank you so much, my old friend. And hello, everyone. I am Ashleigh Banfield as don lemon just said. That means it's 1:00, and I'm filling in for Randi. And we have a very busy hour ahead, so let's get right to it, shall we?

You've been hearing about it. Some people say it's the conservative super bowl. It's the conservative political action conference in Washington, D.C., and I've got you there live right now. This is the vamp up, folks, to the big delegate leader, Mitt Romney. If you want to be the Republican nominee for president, you'd better have your game face on when you come to CPAC. And you better have CPAC on your side, some say. There is a caveat to that, I'll get to that in a moment.

Any second now, as I said, we're expecting Mitt Romney is going to make his case from that podium to this audience. A critical audience, core conservatives in that audience. And the message he wants to deliver, I am your core conservative leader. And I've got a message for you. We're following those comments live as he shakes the hand of the interviewer -- or the -- oh, look at that, perfect timing. As Mitt Romney takes the podium, let's listen in live as he gets ready to sell his conservative message and his record in Massachusetts.

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