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Leaders Agree on Bailout; Campaigns Gird for Further Debates
Aired September 28, 2008 - 22:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. NANCY PELOSI, HOUSE SPEAKER: No longer will the U.S. taxpayers bail out the recklessness of Wall Street.
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DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Bailout breakthrough, the $700 billion rescue plan is out.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is about mainstream. It is about America.
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LEMON: What's in it? What does it mean for you and for the presidential race?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you ready for Joe Biden next week?
GOV. SARAH PALIN (R), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Looking forward to it.
SEN. JOE BIDEN (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I think it's going to be a really tough debate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: The next debate, the pressure is on for Biden and Palin.
The pirates attack, seizing a ship loaded with Russian weapons, massive ransom demanded, foreign warships close in. The pictures and the stories you haven't seen until right now.
Hello, everyone, I'm Don Lemon. It is unprecedented in its size, in its scale and its unbelievable price tag. And now it is heading for a vote in Congress. There are three questions on my mind right now and probably on yours, too. What is in it and how does it affect me and what's next? We're going to spend a lot of time this hour breaking down this $700 billion financial rescue plan and answering those questions for you. So, here are details for you.
The money would be handed out in stages with $250 billion available right away there would be limits on salaries paid to executives who take part in the bailout and a new board would be created to oversee how that massive pile of money gets spend. We are covering every angle for you from Washington politics to the global marketplace to the rest of us living our daily lives.
CNN's Brianna Keilar is on Capitol Hill. Ali Velshi is in New York. Hugh Riminton is standing by for us in Hong Kong where Monday trading is already under way and CNN's Richard Quest is in Los Angeles, also keeping an eye on the world markets. Let's start out on Capitol Hill where a short time ago, members of Congress laid out in writing a plan they would like to see enacted. CNN's Brianna Keilar has been working this story around the clock. Brianna.
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Don, this is it, the 110- page bailout plan that we are expecting to have a vote on the House floor on tomorrow. An agreement on this thing came, in part, because of fiscal conservatives, inserting a provision they would like to see. A provision that allows the Treasury Secretary to make Wall Street by government-backed insurance for its bad assets.
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PELOSI: We sent a message to Wall Street, the party is over.
KEILAR (voice-over): Congress struck a deal Sunday on a bailout for the financial markets. After more than a week of negotiations and bleary-eyed shuttle diplomacy, the lone holdouts, House republican leaders, finally signed on.
REP. JOHN BOEHNER (R), MINORITY LEADER: Nobody wants to have to support this bill, but it's a bill that we've come to and we've worked on together. It's a bill that we believe will avert the crisis that's out there.
KEILAR: The $700 billion rescue package will be disbursed in stages, $250 billion to start. The Treasury Secretary will use that money to buy up devalued mortgage-backed securities that are weighing down balance sheets of financial institutions and ultimately making hard for consumers to get credit approval for houses, cars, even college loans. The plan includes an oversight board, among other provisions, and it curbs hefty salaries and golden parachutes for CEOs of bailed out corporations.
REP. BARNEY FRANK, FINANCIAL SERVICES CHAIRMNA: People read about these companies that were bailed out, or out of business, and people going away with $15, $20 million, it make it illegal if they get help from the government, they can't do that.
KEILAR: But just weeks before one-third of the Senate and every member of the House faces an election, lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are working hard to win over voters, afraid Congress is throwing the better part of a trillion taxpayer dollars at Wall Street.
SEN. LINDSEY GRAHAM (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: From a taxpayer point of view, if we don't act up here, your 401(k) plan, the value of your home, the ability to grow your business, the ability to borrow money to advance your family's interest will begin to be nonexistent.
REP. NANCY PELOSI (R), HOUSE SPEAKER: People have to know that this isn't about a bailout of Wall Street, it is a buy-in so that we can turn our economy around.
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KEILAR: After the House votes on this tomorrow, we are expecting it to go to the Senate. A vote there expected as early as Wednesday after the Jewish holidays, Don.
LEMON: Thank you, Brianna. Senior business correspondent Ali Velshi is in New York. Ali, help us understand what's in this draft bill and what it means for us.
ALI VELSHI, CNN, SENIOR BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: All right. What it means for you first of all is that credit is freed up and that helps you in two ways, one is it flows downward toward the bank with which you do business, so, slightly easier theoretically to get a loan on your house, car loan, student loan, a line of credit. As much as those loans were available, they were available increasingly with people higher and higher credit limits, on houses that were a sure bet, where you were able to put a lot of money down. There will be some loosening of that credit that helps if you are selling a house, because it means people who are putting bids on there might have an easier time getting a mortgage.
But there is a whole other side to this, which is probably more important, Don, because while people don't get loans every day they go to work every day and there were certain major American corporations that are starting to have money, getting lines of credit for operating expenses, things that might have been, like rent or utilities or eve salaries. We hadn't seen it yet but we were very close to seeing it. There were major corporations that were running short of the ability to get money. So that is the number one thing that you are going to see.
As far as the rest of it, it is major - it is going to flow downward from the fact that credit has been loosened. So you are not going to feel that immediate impact. What you are feeling is the avoidance of something that could have made our economic situation substantially worse than this right now, Don.
LEMON: And Ali, let's talk about those CEOs.
VELSHI: Yes.
LEMON: The House Speaker say the party is over.
VELSHI: Total red herring, that's not even true. They shouldn't have even - I mean, I have been saying for over a week that it is just completely an issue that should have been dealt with separately. Guess what, anybody getting a bailout right now, it will have no bearing on their CEO whatsoever. This is for new companies that are involved in this. And in fact what they are doing is saying that over $500,000, you are not going to be able to write it off. You know, it's just not the right way to handle this but as Chris Dodd said, this has never been tackled by Congress before. This is a first step and I think Americans should see it as a first step. Congress if they really want to deal with executive compensation is going to have to take it up in a separate matter and it's probably not going to happen in this Congress. So people shouldn't be too excited about this one, it's not just of much consequence at all.
LEMON: CNN's senior business correspondent, Ali Velshi. Thank you, Ali.
VELSHI: OK, Don.
LEMON: Well, President Bush is joining congressional leaders from both parties and calling for a quick passage of the bailout plan. In a statement, Mr. Bush said the plan sends a strong signal to markets around the world. As for Americans, he said, "the bill will help allow access to credit so American families can meet their daily needs and American businesses can make purchases, ship goods and meet their payrolls."
The two presidential candidates are supporting the proposed rescue plan but there is a noticeable lack of enthusiasm. Barack Obama says he expects he will be in favor of the final draft, assuming it meets several key requirements.
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SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I'm going to be reviewing the language over the next day to make sure that those provisions actually stick. Ultimately, I believe that we have to get something done. And so if I feel that those are meaningful provisions that provide some constraints on how the Treasury operates and this is not going to be welfare for Wall Street, then my inclination is to support it because I think Main Street is now at stake.
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LEMON: Republican John McCain says he expects to support the plan as well. He said it's the only option available, but it won't solve all the problems facing the economy.
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SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: This is not going to all of a sudden, wow, everything is turned around, everything's going to be fine now. We've got a lot of other difficulties, including the continued decline in housing home values. That has to reach a point where it stabilized and again hopefully will go up in America. But let's look at this - let's look at this particular proposal. Let's get it through the Congress and the Senate and then sit down and see what else needs to be done before we say got to do this, this and this as well.
(END VIDEO CLIP) LEMON: All right. So, that's where the presidential candidates stand on this huge rescue plan. Let's bring in CNN political editor Mark Preston. He joins us tonight from Washington. So Mark did either of them get what they wanted out of all of this?
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, let me tell you, Don, I spent six intense years covering Capitol Hill. And at the end of the day, the reason this deal got done is Congress and President Bush had to get a deal done. You know, really, when you look at it, I don't think Barack Obama or John McCain are going to walk away from this with any big win. The fact is they are both going to support this bill. They both arrived at a pretty much the same way. They were both in Washington last week. We have already had one debate. People were looking at the debates now. They're not wondering how we got to this area.
LEMON: Yes but Mark, Republican leaders praising John McCain tonight for helping facilitate this plan.
PRESTON: Yes, absolutely. In just few hours ago, Don, John McCain got some valuable cover. There is a lot of criticism for McCain for saying that he might not appear at the debate on Friday night. John Boyner, the republican leader came out, told reporters, told our audience, that look, if it wasn't for John McCain who slowed this bill down on Thursday, I, myself would have been run over. This is a very important message to independents, especially an important message now to the Republican base, who are now going to be looking at John McCain. And he needs them to vote for him on election day.
LEMON: All right. Political editor Mark Preston. Mark, thank you.
The vice presidential candidates square off on Thursday and Mark will be back a little bit later on to tell us what we can expect from the VP debate.
The deal is done. Now the real work begins, adding up the cost to you and the impact on the global economy. Live pictures from Washington now. We are working all angles of this story. If you want to take a closer look yourself at the deal, they came up with, click on to cnnmoney.com.
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LEMON: Financial markets are now open in Asia. That could give us our first glimpse of how the Wall Street bailout plan is being viewed overseas. CNN's Hugh Riminton is watching the trading in Hong Kong, where it is just after 10:00 in the morning. Hugh, give us the numbers, please.
HUGH RIMINTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed, the numbers started to come through, before Congress gets to vote on this bailout plan. The markets are voting on it. They're giving their verdict right at the moment. And you have got to say it is hardly a picture of ecstatic delight. Most of the markets in the region opened up, but since then it is a very mixed picture, they have come off a fair bit. Here in Hong Kong, the market opened up, it's now down a little bit. It's the same in Sydney on the main market, (inaudible) strongly up in the early trade but has come back to just about flat, up about an eighth of one percent at the moment. And in Tokyo, the markets are up at the moment, but if they were trying to get this deal done ahead of the Asian markets to put a big boost through the entire markets, the global markets with this bailout agreement, well there is not a lot of evidence of real delight out there in the marketplace, Don.
LEMON: Got a question for you then, Hugh, why is the Asian reaction so muted then?
RIMINTON: Well, one thing you have to say is it, had they utterly failed in Washington, had they all walked away, and said look this is never going to happen, you can be sure the markets would have tanked today. As it happens, they have done pretty much what is expected of them that they would somehow be able to fashion together some sort of bailout plan and it was the talk of the bailout plan that stopped the freefall 11 days ago, when the markets were absolutely heading down hill with no sign of a floor. Maybe the floor arrived at the moment and has given some people some thinking time but what they are looking at is that there are still some fundamental issues in the global economy. It is slowing and the U.S. consumer is almost out of the picture. The thing that has driven so much of the world economy over the last decade that is the ordinary American buying things, buying things with credit cards, taking equity out of their houses to buy things that is not going to return again in a real hurry. Don.
LEMON: Hugh Riminton in Hong Kong. Thank you very much, Hugh.
International correspondent Richard Quest joins us now, bank failures and bailouts, Americans are asking - this is a question for you, Richard why they are footing the bill for all of this. Shouldn't the rest of the world be paying their part, too?
RICHARD QUEST, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Don, you are not going to like the answer. Americans are footing the bill tonight because the problems are in the United States. It was the subprime mortgages, the shoddy lending, the bad debts, the dodgy deals and ultimately, it was the nastiness on Wall Street that has infiltrated into other parts of the world. That's not to say there isn't enough blame to go around. For instance, in Britain tonight, the regulators are bailing out the Bradford and Binley Savings and Loans. Two other banks have already been bailed out.
So, there is more than enough nastiness for everybody, but what everybody wants to look at tonight is whether or not this lubrication of money coming from the U.S. government in the form of the bailout will be sufficient. We know it's necessary, but is it going to be sufficient to get the cogs and the wheels and the motion of the financial world moving again?
LEMON: Richard Quest, keeping an eye on the world financial markets, thank you, Richard.
A major typhoon lashes Taiwan. It literally blows people away. We will show you more of this stunning video.
And a standoff in the Indian Ocean. Somali pirates hijack a ship packed with Soviet era guns and tanks.
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LEMON: Incredible video from Taiwan to show you of a super typhoon ripping right through the capital. You can hear the wind howling. You can see people were literally knocked off their feet. Top winds were clocked at 140 miles per hour, equivalent to a category 4 hurricane. This is the fourth major storm to hit Taiwan this year.
Well, you can score one for China's space program, three astronauts parachuted safely back to earth after three days in orbit. You can see them sitting inside their capsule after it landed on the planes of inner Mongolia. The highlight of the mission was China's first ever space walk.
In suburban Washington, a tragic crash early this morning of a medical helicopter. Four people died in the accident in Ritchie, Maryland. The chopper was airlifting two traffic accident victims to a trauma center when it went down. One of the patients was the only survivor. The crash site is near Andrews Air Force base.
A cargo ship carrying soviet era tanks and other weapons is now in the hands of Somali pirates. The military equipment was destined for Kenya and CNN's David McKenzie has more on how the U.S. and Russian navies are trying to get the ship and the weapons back.
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DAVID MCKENZIE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Very little is stopping the scourge of the sea. Even an impressive coalition naval force of Somalia unable to slow the attacks. Somali pirates have attacked dozens of ships this year and hijacked 25, but it's number 25 that puts the danger into even starker relief. This photo, taken from a U.S. destroyer, shows pirates in small skiffs holding the massive MV (Finar) hostage. The ship has the deadliest of cargo. It was bound for Kenya with 33 Soviet-made T-72 tanks, like these, and packed with small arms, grenade launchers and ammunition. A tense standoff is under way.
The U.S. Navy says the "USS Howard" destroyer, part of the U.S. navy fifth fleet is in visual contact with the captured ship and monitoring the situation. And now the Russians are sending a missile frigate directly to the horn of Africa. The captured cargo's crew consists of Ukrainians, Russians and Latvians. The biggest fear for the coalition is that the weapons could help fuel Somalia's conflict and with such dangerous cargo off the coast, the successful release of the vessel is paramount. David McKenzie, CNN, Nairobi.
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LEMON: The bailout and you, we have a bill, but how much will it cost you, and how fast will the economy rebound if it passes?
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LEMON: The bailout, how is it going to impact the every day citizen. Beverly Goodman, senior editor of "Smart Money" magazine joins us in New York. That question to you, Beverly.
BEVERLY GOODMAN, SENIOR EDITOR "SMART MONEY MAGAZINE": How is it going to affect the every day citizen?
LEMON: Yes.
GOODMAN: I think in most cases, it will make things a little smoother and people are sort of going to not realize quite the bad situations that they could have ended up in. It's going to make businesses work a little bit better and that is going to mean people get their paychecks on time.
LEMON: Yes. But you know, all of this is down the line. And this isn't - it is not guaranteed to work, is it?
GOODMAN: It is not guaranteed to work and even if it does work it is certainly not about to work quickly. The economy is not going to recover overnight. It's not going to be everything OK on Tuesday.
LEMON: OK. So if we are talking everything is not going to be OK on Tuesday, or just within the next couple of days or weeks, as a matter of fact, so give people advice on how to handle their finances during these uncertain times. Because you said this climate is going to continue for a while.
GOODMAN: Absolutely. And it is a really good time to do a gut check on your personal finances. If you're going to need that money in five years or less, it should be in cash now, just like it should have been in cash before this whole thing started happening. So keep your money in an FDIC-insured bank, in a money market fund, which are also now protected, given a little extra protection, or in a CD. If you've got ten years or more before you need the money, if it's being invested in a 401(k) for instance for the future, you're OK. This is actually a good time to buy a little bit as, you know, in a diversified mutual fund.
LEMON: I'm glad you said that you said a diversified mutual fund, what about individual stocks though? Because I'm hearing mixed reviews on that. Some people are saying don't do it, others are saying this is a good time.
GOODMAN: Frankly, it depends on your sophistication with picking stocks.
LEMON: OK.
GOODMAN: If there are bargains to be found out there, but you need to be sure that you're doing all your research and you need to be sure that you're going to be OK if the stock market falls another 20 percent one day. There is no guarantee that we are anywhere near the bottom.
LEMON: OK, Beverly. But let's be real here. A lot of people are getting laid off. I mean we are talking about stocks. Some people can't even afford stocks. Some people don't even have a 401(k). So, if you are, you know at home, you have been laid off, right? GOODMAN: Mm-hmm.
LEMON: What is the best way that you can handle that situation?
GOODMAN: Well, there are two approaches. First, you want to get your financial house in order. Hopefully you've got some sort of emergency fund, six months is ideal. If you are carrying credit card debt, it is very tempting to just hang onto whatever savings you have, but especially with the market the way it is now, you are paying much more interest on that debt than you are earning. And it is still probably a good idea to wipe out as much if not all of your debt as possible, even if that means using your savings.
LEMON: All right. Be calm, don't panic?
GOODMAN: Exactly.
LEMON: OK. Beverly Goodman, senior editor from "Smart Money Magazine." We appreciate it.
GOODMAN: Thank you.
LEMON: Now on to politics, Palin versus Biden. Thursday is debate night for the vice presidential contenders and the stakes couldn't be higher.
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LEMON: Welcome back on this Sunday night, everyone, I'm Don Lemon. We want to update our top story right now. Congress has released details of a massive bailout bill. It would put into play a $700 billion attempted government rescue of the U.S. financial system. Here's what's in it. The $700 billion would be disbursed in stages with $250 billion made available to the Treasury immediately.
Limits would be placed on the compensation of executives at companies that sell mortgage assets. A board would be put into place to monitor how the money gets spent. We are asking you to reach out to us on our CNN platforms here. We want you to go to cnn.com, or either ireport.com or you can reach us at twitter.com/donlemoncnn. Just a couple moments ago, getting some folks from twitter responding saying, Don, the bailout plan - this is from Adam Lee Clark, he says, Don, the bailout plan no matter how inclusive was put together hastily and this bill really needs more time to be inclusive.
John Wayne 68 says, they are not like us. They have no idea how we live. They have gotten used to spending other people's money. The last one, Lisa Red Shoes PR says not only a financial crisis but major PR crisis for Wall Street. Think about each business owner, company, who doesn't get a loan after this. Thank you very much for reaching out to us. We, of course, love your feedback, cnn.com, ireport.com, or twitter.com/donlemoncnn.
All right. We're just days away from the next big showdown in the race for the White House, vice presidential candidates Joe Biden and Sarah Palin will square off Thursday night at Washington University in St. Louis. Well, Sarah Palin was asked last night about John McCain's performance on Friday and her thoughts about her own upcoming debate.
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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Governor, did you watch the debate last night?
GOV. SARAH PALIN (R), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I did.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you ready for Joe Biden next week?
PALIN: I am. Looking forward to it.
(INAUDIBLE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: She was in Philly having some cheese steaks today. Well, for his part, democrat Joe Biden says he is looking forward to taking on Sarah Palin Put he says it is going to be a challenge.
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SEN. JOE BIDEN (D), VICE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I hope I can be as good as Barack Obama was and I hope that Sarah Palin defends the same position John McCain does. That's what I learn.
Now, we may see a different thing. I have great respect for the - what I hear and watch some of the debating skills of Governor Palin. I think it is going to be a really tough debate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: CNN political editor Mark Preston is back. Mark, everyone expects Biden to runaway with this. He certainly doesn't think he is going to runaway with this but are they underestimating Sarah Palin?
MARK PRESTON, CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, look, when it comes to domestic issues, Sarah Palin is probably on solid footing, Don. She was a small-time mayor. She's a governor so she should be fine there. When it comes to foreign policy issues though, she has slipped up and that's something she needs to be very careful about. Republicans I talked to Don, say that they are concerned that she could have a major slip up on Thursday night and that might be enough to cause some independent voters not to the vote for John McCain. But having said that we will see what happens on Thursday night.
LEMON: I'm glad you mentioned that because there was something today at a Philly cheese steak shop in Philadelphia, where she said something and they said that it was sort of not what John McCain's policy was on Afghanistan. And he said that she was - she was reaching out. You know, she was talking in a private conversation, so it didn't have anything to do with foreign policy. He didn't believe.
OK. Let's talk about Joe Biden now. He's got to be careful not to come off as the smarter kid in the class or at least as condescending in this debate. PRESTON: Yes. No question. Two things, Don, that we will look for, one is he needs not to be patronizing to Sarah Palin. I will tell you that is a concern among democrats that I have spoken to. He's got to be very careful to walk a fine line. He does not want to alienate those independent women voters who live in Ohio, who live in Pennsylvania, who live in the midwest. These are voters who supported Hillary Clinton. Number two, is that he is a U.S. senator, has been since 1973. Senators are known for being verbose. And of course, we all know Joe Biden can be a little long-winded. So he's got to be careful. He has to keep his answers short and very snappy.
LEMON: Mark Preston, that's why you're the best, because you have all the information. CNN political editor Mark Preston joining us on this Sunday night. We appreciate it. Have a good week ahead, sir.
PRESTON: Thanks, Don.
LEMON: Joe Biden, Sarah Palin will share the stage Thursday night right here on CNN. It is the showdown everyone has been waiting for, the vice presidential debate, Thursday night, 9 p.m. Eastern, plus post debate analysis from the best political team on television.
So you want to be a millionaire? Think it is not possible in these tough economic times? We will get straight talk from a young man who went from poverty to extreme wealth, all before he turned 20.
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LEMON: If I got paid every time someone asks, Don why won't the government bail out the average American, and I could probably write the $700 billion bailout check myself. Well, Christopher Schroeder is a CNN I-reporter and he got some answers.
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CHRISTOPHER SCHROEDER, CNN I-REPORTER: I'm going to take that money and pay off their mortgages. Will that not help the economy? I know it sure as heck would help me. Not only would all the shifty loans be paid off and the banks would still receive their money, but the average person, like myself, who is struggling to make ends meet, would not only be elated, but we most likely would pump more money into our economy, which is consumer-driven.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: All right. Thank you very much for that, Christopher. Let's look for some more answers now. And joining me now is Mr. Farrah Gray. Farrah Gray is an entrepreneur. He is an author. He is a CEO and he is not even 30 yet. As a matter of fact, he became a millionaire at the age of 14. OK. So, everyone is asking, why not give it to the American people? Why not bailout the American people instead of bailing out the financial institutions, Farrah?
DR. FARRAH GRAY, AUTHOR "GET REAL, GET RICH": The thing that scares me the most is we have to make sure that we bail ourselves out, because dealing with the bailout challenge and the potential issue of taxpayers not being able to be saved from this process, you look at the fact that over four million people have about to foreclose or are in a foreclosure process, so they have bad credit anyway. So what they're going to have to do is protect those people that can't get a loan anyway, when they say the industry will be devastated. And I think we have to bail ourselves out. And I'm a strong believer, a lot of people know me from hand painted rocks that I sold when I was 6 years old, just - that was my first entrepreneurial business. We have to get back to basics and answer the calling that we have within us, I believe, and that's to be entrepreneurs. We are all CEO of a corporation of one, whether we work in a major corporation or not, we have to look toward entrepreneurship as another stream of income and we have to bail ourselves out like starting our own businesses.
LEMON: Is it naive to think that the government would actually bail out the American people and give the American people money before they would do it for these corporations and for these financial institutions?
GRAY: I think it is what we would all hope for. I think naive and hope are two different things, but clearly, again, it goes back to finding an opportunity and a way to create another stream of income.
LEMON: OK. All right, thank you very much, sir. Foreclosers, as you heard Farrah Gray say, at the heart of our financial crisis, but what can you or I do to protect ourselves? Dr. Gray comes back.
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LEMON: I was invited to a debt counseling session in Atlanta, for people worried about their personal finances in this struggling economy. 1500 people registered for this, looking for answers. I talked to a realtor who said things look bleak for first-time homeowners and I want you to take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TIKI CARTER, REALTOR: I'm a professional realtor, I have helped a lot of first-time homeowners get into homes in the last two years and I'm at a point now where they can't do it anymore. They don't have money for down payments. You hear people talking about well if they don't have the income, then they shouldn't own a home and I don't think that's true. And it's sad. It's sad.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: We want to bring you an entrepreneur and CEO Dr. Farrah Gray. He is back with us now. And it is very interesting when I heard - I heard from a radio host, Warren Valentine, that 1,500 to 2,000 people had signed up for this seminar at a church. I was very interested. I took my own camera and went out and shot it. I couldn't believe the number of people who showed up. So people say, you know, they are looking for - to become homeowners and people who sell their homes for a living say that they are struggling. So, what do you say to people about that who have problems with their mortgages, and are looking to become homeowners? What advice do you have for them? GRAY: Well, clearly the American dream is homeownership. When you look at - one time at a church and the pastor said there's two things god's not going to do. He is not going to add anymore water. He is not going to add any more land. So people have to own where they live. So it's important and I think it goes back to predatory lenders, and I blame them for the crisis that we are in today because when you sell someone the dream of home ownership, the American dream, hey, you can have $1 million home, but you only make $50,000. Let's go state it. People have fallen prey to what is taking place, and again, I blame it completely on predatory lending.
So I would encourage people to still look toward homeownership. There are foreclosures, you can now buy homes at a wonderful price. So a lot of people are running away from the real estate market. I operate a real estate asset management company, we now have $40 million under management. We got major clients like Citibank and others. And we tell people every day it is possible to own your own home and it will be affordable.
LEMON: Well, doctor, it is the American dream to own a home but it is not practical for everyone. And many people are in debt because of their homes, credit card debt, and you say it is just a form of being in shackles?
GRAY: Absolutely. I believe that debt, any time you owe someone, you become a slave to debt. So, I believe it is very important to do what's affordable. When we got caught up in the fact that people were selling us the American dream. Hey, you can have $1 million home but you only make $50,000, it is important to buy what you can afford. And I always say we have to live below our means because it means we won't go broke.
LEMON: All right. Dr. Farrah Gray also said that at this time and some very good advice that you gave me not long ago. at this time, when the economy is like this it is time to follow your dream and follow your passion and build a bridge and they will come. Thank you very much, Dr. Farrah Gray.
GRAY: Thank you for having me.
LEMON: Thank you for joining us here in the NEWSROOM. He is an author, he is a CEO and he was a millionaire by the time he was a teenager.
It is in to be out on TV and on the big screen. We will talk to an actor from one of the most popular shows out there. You'd be mad not to stick around.
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LEMON: It seems like every hit TV show suddenly has a prominent gay character and it is not a coincidence and not everyone is pleased about it either. CNN's Lola Ogunnaike reports.
LOLA OGUNNAIKE, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: When Ellen Degeneres' character came out on the late '90s show, "Ellen," she was one of the lone gay voices on television.
ELLEN DEGENERES, TV HOST: I'm gay.
OGUNNAIKE: Now more than a decade later there are 16 gay or bisexual characters on network prime time shows this fall, more than double the number from 2007, according to the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. Hit shows like "Ugly Betty," "Brothers and Sisters," "The Office" and "Gray's Anatomy" all have gay or bisexual characters and this fall, five new gay characters will hit the air waves.
NEIL GIULIANI, GAY & LESBIAN ALLIANCE AGAINST DEFAMATION: It simply reflects society and the fact that we are more visible than ever and so makes television not only a really good television but it makes their portrayals more honest and more real.
OGUNNAIKE: And it is not just television. In many segments of pop culture it is in to be out. Just this week, "American Idol" runner up Clay Aiken announced he was gay in "People" magazine. The same place where America got a look at wedding photos of Ellen Degeneres and Portia De Rossi.
(MUSIC PLAYING)
I kissed a girl and I liked it.
OGUNNAIKE: One of the biggest songs of the year, "I kissed a girl" is about a smooch. And earlier this week, Lindsey Lohan confirmed she's dating a woman.
DEGENERES: I don't know if it is pressure, but I would like to represent every gay couple out there.
OGUNNAIKE: But if it is in to be gay, not everyone's happy.
PETER SPRIG, FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL: These characters are being placed on television shows for propaganda purposes in order to persuade the American public to be more accepting of homosexual conduct itself. And in that sense, I feel like the result for society is likely to be negative.
OGUNNAIKE: And Hollywood's embrace of gay culture has not necessarily translated to public policy. In 30 states it's still legal to fire or refuse to hire someone because of sexual orientation, according to the ACLU.
And this November, three more states will consider constitutional amendments banning same-sex marriage.
GIULIANI: It is important that the visibility lead to conversations and that those conversations can lead to having influence on our public policy so that gays and lesbians can be treated equally and fairly fully.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Actor Bryan Batt plays Salvatore Romano on AMC's "Mad Men" and joins us live from New Orleans, Louisiana. Brian, you have chosen to come out and to be out. However, the character you play in "Mad Men" is in the closet?
BRYAN BATT, ACTOR: Oh, yes.
LEMON: It's a different time period, it's the 1960s. How is it - how have things changed, you think, between now and then? He obviously feels that he cannot come out. You feel that you can.
BATT: Well, honestly, people ask me on the street, when is Sal coming out? And I basically tell them to what? You know what is he going to come out to? There was no gay community at the time, practically. And very little acceptance, if none at all.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SALVATORE ROMANO: May I? I don't know what to say.
ELLIOTT: It's Elliott. And Salvatore, you don't have to say anything.
SALVATORE ROMANO: No I just - no.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Why did you choose to come out in real life? Because there are people who would say, you know what, this will hurt my career, I'm not going to come out. I want to be the leading man, so I'm going to be in the closet and date women?
BATT: Well, I - I'm one of these people that - I was raised not to lie, not to live a lie. And later on, as I progressed and I grew and I realized that I was gay and this is how I am, I was lucky to have a great core family. My father passed away, unfortunately, but my mother and my brother were very accepting and they knew. You know, people know that people are gay. But no one, none of my friends, none of my family tried to force me into anything.
And we are just very accepting. I never had a big coming out. Yes, I did think maybe this going to hurt me career wise, but I come from Broadway and a lot of theater background. So, you know, no one really cares, when you see a production, you are really just seeing the actor in that production. You know, you don't have to be straight to act straight. You don't have to be gay to play gay.
LEMON: People are going to say you know, it's Hollywood, it's accepted. It is the entertainment industry. But then when you move on to the middle of the country in the midwest and further out in the country, it may not be as accepted as it is in Hollywood and in that industry.
BATT: I think you're right. I think there is - but there is, I think, a little bit of homophobia. I do believe that through education and seeing good, honest, positive, you know, gay role models, you know, it will just educate. I think we are - we are producing generations now of a youth that do not judge people, they don't judge people on their race or their religion or their sexuality.
LEMON: When you run down the list of people who have come out, Neil Patrick Harris, and the list goes on, I'm - do you find it - do you think it will be easier for someone who may be in the midwest or may be in the community and doesn't think it's acceptable to do that?
BATT: Oh, definitely. Oh, definitely. And it's not just actors or celebrities. I mean, I think it is important for gay doctors and lawyers and just regular people. You know, everyone knows someone who is gay or friends with someone who is gay and when it boils down to it, you're friends with the person, not their sexuality, or not their religion, or not their race. It is a human connection.
LEMON: Bryan Batt plays Salvatore Romano in AMC's "Mad Men." It is my new favorite show on television.
(LAUGHTER)
BATT: Thank you.
LEMON: Thank you, Bryan.
BATT: It's good, isn't it?
LEMON: Yes. It's fantastic.
BATT: It's pretty good.
LEMON: Remembering Paul Newman. His death made headlines, even in Iran.
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LEMON: All right. Now the video that you must watch, really the story is behind it, that is what makes this. We're not sure if this deejay should be fired or if he should be promoted. Take a look at that as you can see, a blaze broke out while he was on the air, but he hardly even notices. Eventually what he does, and he tries to put the fire out with his foot, instead, makes the situation even worse, even as the flames spread, he keeps right on talking into the microphone. A staffer finally pushes in and puts out the fire, he tries to do it with his foot, too. The deejay never missed a beat.
All right. Let's talk about pushing the envelope here. See this little speck? That's actually a guy. Look at that. It's a daredevil, Frenchman Yves Rossy. He became a real-life Buzz Lightyear on Thursday with nothing more than a pair of jet-powered wings and nerves of steel, he crossed the English Channel at 125 miles per hour. Minutes later, the 22-mile trip was over and Rossy crossed over the famous white cliffs of Dover, England, and parachuted safely back to earth. After landing, he humbly said he is just the ordinary guy doing what he loves. Would you do that? Would you do that?
JACQUI JERAS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: No.
LEMON: After a couple of drinks?
JERAS: No. I'm just laughing because like anybody who has like children or seen "Toy Story" and Buzz Lightyear, you know, he's got the white suit.
LEMON: The whole thing, right?
JERAS: Exactly.
LEMON: They try to make those characters. What do we have going on in the weather? You look lovely.
JERAS: Well thank you. So do you as always.
LEMON: All right. It's a love fest over here.
JERAS: Good. We're watching Kyle which by the way no longer a hurricane, no longer a tropical storm, it just lost all of its tropical characteristics, it's actually been kind of doing that all day, but the hurricane center just sent out their 11:00 Eastern time advisory, a little bit early saying that it is extra tropical now, but still packing winds though around 70 miles an hour, moving through the bay of Fundy, and heading on up through the New Brunswick area, still going to bring in those strong winds. 70-mile-an-hour gusts are possible.
We just reported a wind gust around 56 miles per hour there in Halifax, Nova Scotia. So for the most part, New England got off easy on this in terms of major impact. But rain has really been an issue over the last couple of days and we are still seeing those showers in down east Maine and moving throughout the Canadian maritime. Now on top of this, we got a cold front that's trying to make its way to the north east, and there you see some scattered showers, from Boston heading down towards New York City.
These showers are going to be kind of lingering around here throughout parts of tomorrow morning, so, be aware of that, that you could be a little wet. And even if the shower do dry out, we think you will be a little bit on the overcast side. So, some airport delays can be expected tomorrow. Boston, also the New York City metro, but probably going to stay around 30 minutes to an hour or so.
Also delays expected in Chicago and Milwaukee because the clouds and rain, those delays could be a little heftier. They may get some fog in the morning in Los Angeles and that will hold you up, but things should be smooth sailing by the afternoon. Overall, not a travel terrible day expected.
LEMON: Hey, Jacqui, I'm sure you will agree, when I heard the news yesterday about Paul Newman, just aghast.
JERAS: Yes.
LEMON: Very sad. I mean, you know, he was a global superstar and his death at the age of 83 is front page news around the world. His star on Hollywood on Hollywood Boulevard has become a shrine. Even Iran, no fan of western pop culture, mourned the loss of "the blue-eyed kid." CNN I-reporters have been sharing their memories too. Here's one from Michelle Poole. She took these photos of Newman last year at a camp near Seattle. She says Newman was there because the property was about to become part of his hole in the wall gang camps for children with serious illnesses. Poole says she spent about nine hours with Newman and believes these are among the last ones taken of him while he was healthy.
Critics and fans rarely had a bad word for Newman's acting. The actor, however, was not always so generous to himself.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAUL NEWMAN, ACTOR: I've done my best work, I guess, in the last ten years. I wish I knew as much about acting then as I knew now. I think - I think I would have made some changes in "The Hustler." I would have made some changes in "Cool Hand Luke."
A lot of guys laying down rules and regulations.
I would have just done things differently.
What happened to the old thing? It was beautiful?
People get robbed. A small price to pay for beauty.
No one should ever do a remake of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid."
The only character that was worth re-examining again was Fast Eddie Fellson.
Nobody can make that shot and you know it, it not even a lucky lush.
It was a re-examination of a character 20 years later, because at the end of "The Hustler", he had won, but he - he was deprived of any further work as a pool hustler. So, it was worthwhile to go back and find out how Fast Eddie kept being Fast Eddie and what he was Fast Eddie at.
Pool excellence is not about excellent pool. It is about becoming something.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah?
NEWMAN: Yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Like what?
NEWMAN: A student. You got to be a student of human moves. See all the greats I knew, to a man, were students of the human movement.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Student of human of moves.
NEWMAN: Yeah, that's my area of excellence.
As I say, I wish I had known as much as I know now. I wouldn't have worked as hard.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: Paul Newman in his own words. He will be missed. I'm Don Lemon, thanks for joining us tonight. We will see you back here next weekend at 5:00, 6:00 and 10 p.m.. We hope you learned something. Have a good night and a great week ahead.
