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Obama to Address Congress, Skeptics Tonight in Joint Session of Congress; Denise Amber Lee's Husband Has New Cause; All Eyes on Apple and Steve Jobs
Aired September 09, 2009 - 13:57 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Pushing forward to 8:00 Eastern tonight, folks, a turning point on health care reform and a make-or- break speech from the president. He'll talk in detail about his own plan for health care reform. Tonight's the night he spells it out and tries to sell it.
This will be his second address before a joint session of Congress and should last for a little less than an hour. We've learned that he'll explain why he wants a public option, what it would do and wouldn't do and explain with examples why he thinks it's so important. He'll also express support for medical malpractice reform. That's something Republicans and doctors support as well.
He'll also say he's open to other ideas. Speaking of those, the "gang of six" senators, three from each party, planning to meet today to tweak their bipartisan bill and have a new version out this week. Just about an hour ago, we heard from Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus.
Baucus's plan does not include -- or Baucus, rather -- the public option. He's convinced that it would never survive a Senate vote. It does include co-ops and details, mandates and penalties. Baucus says that the gang's proposal includes Republicans ideas, but adds that he's ready to move ahead with or without their support.
The president has been careful to say that the public option is preferred, not mandatory. And don't look for him to draw lines in the sand during tonight's speech. White House press secretary Robert Gibbs talked a little bit more about what to expect.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: The president's going to talk about the public option and talk about the value of bringing, through a public option, choice and competition to the private insurance market. I think that's going to be a big part of what the president talks about. It's not going to be all of what the president talks about because it's not the totality of health care.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Well, let's talk about those words, public option. It's a government-run (AUDIO GAP) think Medicare, but for younger people. Under that plan, people would pay premiums 10 to 20 percent less than they would to a private insurance company. And there are other ideas that lawmakers are looking at as well.
Our national political correspondnet Jessica Yellin is here with that. All right, kind of lay out a couple of those other plans, Jessica.
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: OK, so, Kyra, one of the big themes we've heard from the president and top Democrats is that 80 percent of health care is already agreed on. There are in fact five different bills in Congress. One of them has yet to pass out of the committee. That's the Senate Finance Committee bill.
OK, but we've talked a lot about that. Let's look at the other four, three in the House, one in the Senate. For the most part, those four are incredibly similar.
They include a public option, which is a way for the inunsured to get coverage when private insurance won't cover them. That would be government run, and therefore it's triggered some controversy. They would require -- all those bills would require individuals to buy insurance or pay a penalty. Lower-income Americans, they'd get subsidies so that they could help afford it. Employers would also have to pay part of the health care premiums for their employees. And the big area of agreement among all the Democrats and Republicans right now -- I should never say all, but big area of agreement between many Democrats and Republicans is they include insurance reforms.
Most folks think that's essential. That includes rejecting a ban on people with pre-existing conditions, for example. So they really need to reform insurance, most folks agree.
Now, the big area of disagreement: how to pay for it all. Should everyone be required to get coverage? And of course, that public option.
PHILLIPS: All right. Jessica Yellin, appreciate it. We'll be watching tonight, 8 p.m. Eastern Time, right here on CNN.
One group that's 110 behind the public option, the Congressional Black Caucus says that its support is unwavering. Earlier this afternoon in Washington, Donna Christensen, the congressional delegate from the U.S. Virgin Islands, put it this way.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DONNA CHRISTENSEN (D), U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS DELEGATE: We are determined to take advantage of this opportunity that we may never have again. We are determined to see that our health-care system is not just reformed but transformed. That begins with insurance for all, but it doesn't end there. We must have a robust public health plan, along with the private plans. Without a robust public plan, there is no guarantee of change; there's no guarantee of lower rates; and there's no guarantee of inclusion for all.
(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: Christensen also says that health-care reform must go beyond just providing health insurance but should also include the expansion of community health centers and more of a focus on prevention.
Some Democrats want to withhold support for any bill that does not include the public option.
Now, the president isn't just feeling pressure from the left fringes of the Democratic Party. He's also taking heat from veterans of his presidential campaign to say health-care reform without the public option is not change that they can believe in. Here's CNN's Jim Acosta with more.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fired up, ready to go! Fired up, ready to go!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fired up, ready to go! Fired up, ready to go!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fired up, ready to go! Fired up, ready to go!
JIM ACOSTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Former staffers from President Obama's campaign rallied in front of the White House, umbrellas in hand, just in case it rains on their parade for the public option. The idea of giving Americans the choice of a government health-care plan.
(on camera) If the president compromises on the public option, has he let you down?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think if the president compromises on the public option, he hasn't just let me down; he let down my entire generation.
REP. JAMES CLYBURN (D-SC), MINORITY WHIP: It may be that we need to take a half loaf rather than a full loaf and get the full loaf three years down the road.
ACOSTA (voice-over): But the No. 3 Democrat in the house, James Clyburn, says it's time to find some middle ground. One compromise, he says, would be to test the public option as a pilot program.
CLYBURN: Let's do that now, then two or three years down the line -- some say four or five -- let's take a look at the facts and see what worked and see whether or not we would then mandate going forward what the public option ought to look like.
ACOSTA (on camera): Some members of the party in the house who will settle for nothing short of a public option now. What do you say to them?
CLYBURN: What I would say to them is that this gets us there. ACOSTA (voice-over): Clyburn says there's also a trigger that would mandate a public option down the road if the insurance industry doesn't improve its performance.
CLYBURN: Well, the fact of the matter is a trigger would include the public option.
ACOSTA: The White House is signaling the president hasn't given up on the option. In his speech to Congress, Mr. Obama is expected to make the case that the option won't impact Americans who get their insurance from their employers for Medicare.
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE SPOKESMAN: The president will discuss both what to the public option isn't and what the public option is in terms of bringing choice and competition.
ACOSTA: Still, even as he campaigned as a change candidate on health care, Mr. Obama said he was also a deal maker.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: In the end, all the good plans in the world won't mean anything if we can't get them passed.
ACOSTA (on camera): And the Democratic majority, where James Clyburn is reminding some of these colleagues that the civil rights laws of the '60s were not passed all at once but over the course of a decade. That kind of effort, he says, may be necessary on health-care reform.
Jim Acosta, CNN, Washington.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Now once again, you can see President Obama's speech right here. Live coverage from the best political team on television, it starts at 8 p.m. Eastern, 5 p.m. Pacific only on CNN.
Now, just a short time ago President Obama spoke at Walter Cronkite's memorial service in New York. Cronkite, as you know the former anchor of "The CBS Evening News," died in July at the age of 92. His memorial service was at Lincoln Center, and it focused on his long career, when he was known as the most trusted name -- well, actually still known as the most trusted name and man in America. Presidents past and president all were there to pay homage.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Through all the events that came to define the 20th century, through all our moments of deepest hurt and brightest hope, Walter Cronkite was there, telling the story of the American age. This is how we remember him today. But we also remember and celebrate the journalism that Walter practiced. A standard of honesty and integrity and responsibility to which so many of you have committed your careers.
BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: That he had the most trusted news program because he had an inquiring mind and a caring heart and a careful devotion to the facts and because he really sensed that, in the words of his own autobiography, he had a deep aversion to group conformity. He was always looking for the story, not the story line. And there's a big difference.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Cronkite was the anchor of "The CBS Evening News" from 1962 to 1981.
Inside a battlefield hospital, a doctor from our own Sanjay Gupta's hometown staying longer than he has to in Afghanistan so he can help save lives. And you won't forget his story.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Every day American military doctors in Afghanistan risk their own lives to save others, and one of them has decided to stay on past his tour of duty. He's from the hometown of CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta, and one of his success -- success stories is a little boy we told you about yesterday who entered the hospital fighting for his life.
The story now from Dr. Sanjay Gupta, who's in Afghanistan all this week.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: One, two, three. Oh, that's a mess. OK.
SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: U.S. Army Major Augustus Brown is the only vascular surgeon in the entire country of Afghanistan.
MAJ. AUGUSTUS BROWN, U.S. ARMY: Probably an anti-personnel mine that he stepped on, and basically, it amputated his legs. His feet were gone. And we completed the amputations.
GUPTA: Brown is 43 years old. He's a long way from home, the same hometown as mine, which makes this all the more personal.
(on camera) This place has been attacked. You're risking your life to save others.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to take care of them.
BROWN: The deal was when they need you, for whatever they need you, go. That's it.
GUPTA (voice-over): The "go" call came January 29. And there's been no rest for this battlefield surgeon.
(on camera) We're here in one of the trauma bays at the Kathrofri (ph) hospital. It's an unusually quiet moment. But I wanted to give you an idea of the numbers here, which give you a reflection of what's happening here in Kandahar, what's happening in Afghanistan. On average, they used to see about 80 patients a month, mainly traumatic patients. By April, it was 100 a month. And take a look at August: roughly 230 patients a month. And I think by fall, the numbers will increase even more.
(voice-over) U.S. troops, coalition forces, locals, Dr. Brown treats them all.
(on camera) They asked me to help out. They needed four surgeons. They only have three. This is what happens when they have a hospital as busy as this one.
One of your children was born while you were deployed?
BROWN: Yes, sir.
GUPTA: How do you deal with that?
BROWN: It is a sacrifice for my family. But it's a privilege. Even when I'm back in Atlanta and they ask, what do I enjoy most about surgery? It's the most fun I've ever had is in -- when I'm at war.
GUPTA: When you had to say good-bye to your wife and your many kids -- you have lots of kids, just like I do -- tell me about that conversation.
BROWN: It was hardest for my son. And the oldest, 6 years old. That's always hard. There's no silver lining. He gave me a good luck charm. It's a little stuffed dog. It's in my uniform in the back. I always go it with. The promise is as long as I keep it on me, I'd be safe.
GUPTA (voice-over): In talking to Major Augustus Brown, I realize there is a fear of death, but he never lets it steal his thoughts. He finds, though, there are some images he can't shut, some that haunt him, like this burned child. Her only pain relief, a package of candy.
BROWN: You just don't ever see yourself, after all those years of education, sitting in the middle of a desert, trying to scrape dead tissue off a child. That was probably the worst day. And they all lived, all of them. And they all got better.
But I think maybe 20 years down the road, when everybody settles down, I could come back and see one of them alive, grown up, and you'd feel like it was worth it.
GUPTA (on camera): Now one thing worth pointing out about Dr. Brown is that he is a reservist. Most reservists stay in theater for about three months and then are asked if they wish to stay longer. He was asked that question, and he's chosen to stay a year.
I also want to show you something that's really a boost to the morale here at Rural 3 (ph). Take a look at this. That's Malik. He's doing very well. He's starting to move the left side of his body. There was a lot of concern that he might not survive, and if he did, he'd be paralyzed on the left side.
He's improving significantly by the day, and we're going to continue to have updates with him all week long.
Back to you.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Nearly eight years after the war started in Afghanistan, that country is still a very dangerous place, as you can see, for the American troops and the people of Afghanistan and in Iraq. And CNN's Anderson Cooper is there this week, and here's some of what he and his crew are facing.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: I thought I'd give you a little taste of what it's like for us here at Patrol Base Jaker. The Marines here all sleeping in tents. The conditions are very difficult for them.
We have it pretty easy here by their standards. We actually have the one actual building on the base. This is actually the room where we're staying. It's small. It's dark. It's packed with our belongings, our equipment. It's where we work. It's also where we sleep. It's also where we bathe and, I don't know, spend most of our time when we're not out on patrol.
There aren't any chairs, you may notice. We sit on boxes and other containers. But as they say, we certainly don't mind. We consider ourselves extremely lucky and very honored to be here and privileged that -- to show you what you the Marines are facing here in Afghanistan and all throughout the country.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: And CNN tonight, an "AC 360" special report from Afghanistan, talking about the elections, the Taliban resurgence and also mounting American casualties. It's a critical moment for that region, and Anderson Cooper takes you inside Afghanistan, live from the battle zone all this week: 10 p.m. Eastern, only on CNN.
And here's a question you may think is a no-brainer: would you relinquish the health-care plan provided by your employer just to shop around? Now, let's take in the walk a mile in someone else's shoes or maybe a couple of steps further.
We want to re-introduce you to a doctor who we've been talking to, Dr. Will Nicholson. He's a Minnesota physician who's actually living that scenario that I just described. We're doing our -- I guess it's our third update now, right, Will?
DR. WILL NICHOLSON, MINNESOTA PHYSICIAN: Yes.
PHILLIPS: All right. So basically, what you've done is you've decided not to take on the insurance plan that your work provided. You just have been going without it, experimenting with different plans. You've tried two now.
Tell me about what you've discovered within those two, what they were, and what's the best approach to even finding a plan?
NICHOLSON: Well, that's a lot of questions.
PHILLIPS: That's a loaded question. Maybe we should talk to what do you think is the best way to try and find the plan that's right for you, or have you not even discovered that yet?
Nicholson: What I have discovered is that there's a reason that my patients were having trouble with their insurance. The insurance market is very complicated and, as you wade into it you find that it's hard to differentiate products. it's hard to understand why they cost what they cost.
And what I'm noticing from this project is that people are contacting me from around the country, and they're sort of telling me about the problems that they've had. It's really hard, because we have maybe not enough options and a lot of consumers that -- that need care.
One of the main things that's come out of this is that a big frustration people have is, when they purchase a plan, you know they do the right thing, and then they need care, and it's not covered by that plan.
So the first thing that I've been telling people to do now that I'm learning about this a little bit, is know what you're not buying. Know where the holes are and the exceptions are in your plan, because every plan has them. And unfortunately, they're not always right up there on the front page. They're in the fine print. You have to read in between the lines.
PHILLIPS: Let me ask you this, then. In the two plans that you investigated, where were the holes?
NICHOLSON: Well, they're -- the difficulty with the holes is that they're presented as a list of benefits. One of the plans I got, if I was -- if I was a female and had to have a baby, the cost of having a baby wouldn't be covered.
Another one of the plans, certain medicines aren't covered. So if a consumer is going to buy this plan, they need to look at it and say, "OK, if I buy this plan and have a baby, I'm going to have to pay for that out of pocket. I'm not covered. If I buy this plan and my kid needs medicine 'X,' we're going to have to find a way to cover that, because that's not covered."
PHILLIPS: Interesting. So would you advise your patients, and I'm just throwing this out there, say for example, OK, one of your patients is a female. She's in her 20s. And she pretty much knows where she wants to go in the future. She wants to get a certain career, a certain job, get married, have a family, maybe live in a certain area.
Would you actually say to your patients, talk a look at your future, your ideal future. Think about what you're going to be doing, what you could encounter, and then look at the benefits of these plans and pick it from there?
NICHOLSON: Well, there's certainly an element of that. I think that's a great way to rule out plans. If you know you're going to have a need, and the plan doesn't cover it, then you really have to look to make sure the plan covers it or not. And I wouldn't pick that plan.
And the problem with insurance is just that; it's insurance. It's for the unexpected events that come along that we can't plan for. And that's where the market really seems to fall short.
You know, people that have preexisting conditions or family members with preexisting conditions, people who run into medical problems that they're not expecting have a lot more problems than someone like me, who's healthy and has a little bit of background knowledge in medicine.
PHILLIPS: So have you figured out what you probably could live with and live without? And have you been able to sort of decipher the plans that way?
NICHOLSON: Well, as a physician, I hate to look at things that way. I mean, the bottom line really is that you can get catastrophic- only care, high-deductible plans that will cover you -- cover you from financial catastrophe, hopefully, in the case of an illness.
But as a physician, you know, I think we need a heck of a lot more than that.
One of the biggest causes of personal bankruptcy in America is -- is medical costs. And 50 percent of the people who go bankrupt, they have health care, they have health insurance. So there's still a lot of holes in the system that we need to iron out.
PHILLIPS: Final thought. What are you going to be looking for in the president's speech tonight? What do you want to hear from him after all this research that you've done?
NICHOLSON: The president has to do one thing: put patients first. You know, we can fix health care. We have to fix health care. And if doing it the right way means offending a few big special interest groups, a few political party members, a few talk show hosts on the radio, you know, we have a word for that in Minnesota. It's called statesmanship.
PHILLIPS: Dr. Will Nicholson, look forward to talking to you after the speech, see if you were satisfied.
NICHOLSON: Thanks. I look forward to it.
PHILLIPS: All right. Well, in Kentucky, former and current high school football players took to the witness today in the trial of their former coach, David Stinson. He's charged with reckless homicide after a player collapsed and died during practice.
Today's witnesses said that the former coach did not withhold water from any of those players.
Prosecutors say that Stinson held a brutal practice that led to the player's death.
A maintenance worker at the University of Arkansas is accused of raping a student in her dorm room. A police report says the young woman had been drinking at a party and didn't remember leaving. The suspect says that she asked him to help her into her room.
In San Francisco, Apple's CEO, Steve Jobs, makes his first appearance at a company event in nearly a year. Jobs delivered the keynote address at that gathering. He announced several new products, including the new iTunes 9, plus a video camera that's being built into the iPod Nano.
It didn't take long for Fred to grow a tropical storm -- from a tropical storm, rather, to a major hurricane. We're going to check in with Chad Myers, who's tracking all the weather for us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: All right, Chad, what's up with this hurricane brewing in the Atlantic?
CHAD MYERS, CNN METEOROLOGIST: Nothing makes a weatherman happier than a major hurricane that's not going to hit anything.
PHILLIPS: There you go.
MYERS: That's it, man. Go make some...
PHILLIPS: Exciting stuff as long as it doesn't add to devastation.
MYERS: Exactly. Make some waves, knock yourself out. Surfers will be happy somewhere.
Look at this bad boy. This thing is really significant. I'm going to turn this on. That is the eye sitting right there. It is one bad guy: 120 miles an hour.
And I was just thinking, we call our anchor Fredricka, Fred, you know, kind of been laughing. So if you have someone named Fred, you say, hey, your friend is a major hurricane.
Anyway, it is so far out there that we are so not worried about it, as well. That's the good news. Because Africa here, 3,400 miles to the left is Miami, and this thing is going to do nothing except go up here into the cold water of the north Atlantic and make a cool, shallow, cold death. It just runs out of warm water. Some showers across parts of New York today, parts of Philadelphia and New Jersey, as well. And now we're seeing a few more showers pop up across the south. But I'm not expecting any severe weather today, Kyra. I think it's just going to be a day where the rain showers pop up, they come and they go.
Finally for you in southeastern Kansas, the weather beginning to dry out. It has been one flooding day the past couple of -- actually, the past couple of days across parts of Kansas. Look at Wichita. Wichita picked up almost four inches of rain in one day.
Now, Cape Hatteras, you picked up almost 5 1/2 inches. That probably wasn't a very good beach vacation day yesterday, unless you're inside playing -- I don't know, you're probably playing Monopoly at that point in time at 5 1/2 inches. It just has to be a really long day when you're sitting there watching it rain on your beach, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Thanks, Chad.
MYERS: Sure.
PHILLIPS: President Obama polishing his sales pitch to Congress, on the line reforming a broken health-care system. We're going to tell you what to listen for. Get ready for an armchair breakdown.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, forget those lingering late summer reruns, because the Obama show is coming back to prime time, and tonight's very special episode is all about health reform. It's a make-or-break moment before a special joint session of Congress. Expect details, details, details.
We've learned that President Obama will keep pushing for the public option, despite mixed messages in the last few weeks. We also hear that the president hasn't written his own health-care bill yet, as it was recently rumored that he would.
So what else can you expect to hear tonight? Let's bring in senior political analyst Gloria Borger. She joins us live from New York.
So Gloria, let's get further in about the details concerning what the president is going to say.
GLORIA BORGER, CNN POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, I think -- I spoke with a senior White House advisor this morning who put it to me this way. The advisor said, "At the end of this speech, there's finally going to be an 'it'." And by the "it," we mean an Obama plan. You are finally going to hear what President Obama would like to see in his health-care plan.
But I think he's also going to make the point here, that he's not going to let the perfect be the enemy of the good. That if other people have some good ideas, he's willing to compromise. So he'll be for that public option, but he understands it's not the only way to get -- only way to get where he needs to go.
PHILLIPS: Will this change any minds in Congress? What do you think?
BORGER: It's interesting to me, Kyra. I actually think that this isn't really a speech for Congress. I think people in Congress, in many ways, have made up their minds. He's speaking before a joint session of Congress, because that actually gives him more time to speak.
But I think this is an outside game in which he's speaking to the American people. Because he understands that the notion of health care reform, because people have been so confused about it, has really been losing in popularity.
So, what he wants to do is tell the American people, particularly senior citizens who are skeptical, particularly those people who already have access to health care, about why this is going to be good for them, too.
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Okay, well, then you look at the Gang of Six and the plan by Senator Max Baucus, we have been talking a lot about that in the last couple of days, it leaves out the public option. So, would the president ever go along with that? Because sources are saying he's going to go with what he wants to go with.
BORGER: Right. Well, we're, you know -- he's got a problem, obviously, because he's got the liberals in the House who won't vote for anything that does not have a public option. And he's got lots of Senate Republicans and some conservative Senate Democrats who won't go for anything that does have a public option.
So, I think in the end, he may wind up somewhere in the middle, and that is in which a public option might get triggered if the insurance companies don't do what they're supposed to do. Because, you know, they're really worried about those conservative and moderate Democrats in the House, also, because they have to get re-elected.
And the irony here is that Rahm Emanuel, when he was head of the Democratic Campaign Committee in the House, he got those folks to run for Congress. So, now he's got to get them re-elected, and they don't want to lose those folks. The liberals are actually in safe districts.
PHILLIPS: Gloria Borger. Thanks.
BORGER: Sure.
PHILLIPS: We know how hard it is to keep track of all of this health care stuff, but Gloria helped us quite a bit there with laying it down. But CNN.com does have this easy resource as well to cut through everything. And our Josh Levs is in the NEWSROOM to show you how to use it.
Let's just hope that's not difficult.
(LAUGHER)
PHILLIPS: Hopefully that's not difficult to get to the easy information.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, we're making it as easy as we can. CNN.com/healthcare. What Gloria said is really helpful.
What we want you to do is visit this one site anytime after you hear a speech, like tonight, when you see an ad, whatever it is, get the facts. Let's zoom right in.
I want to start off showing you an Explainer, one of our newer features. Some people might not know about this. It talks you through some of the key sticking points in the debate right now, and as you go through this, it starts off here with the idea of a government-sponsored health care plan and why that is creating such a sticking point. A mandate.
Let's do one more here -- it talks about the expansion of current programs. Also, you can go here to learn about the key players. For example, you're hearing a good deal about Max Baucus, who's in the news a lot. We talk to you about the key players and why they're so important.
And also a comparison of the key plans that exist right now. Let's get back to this main page here. CNN.com/healthcare. When you're there, I also encourage you to bring up the fact checks. You click right there, brings you all the Truth Squad fact checks that we have from this.
And this, one more very cool feature. All these ads you keep seeing on TV, you can take a look at these ads and you can look over here to see who those people are, what the group is behind it, what their agenda is, where they're coming from.
And everything I just showed you, you can get to very easily, Kyra. CNN.com/healthcare. And also, I posted links, CNN.com/josh, if that's easier to remember, for some reason. We definitely encourage you ato check it out. Tonight after the speech, there will be more and more and tomorrow, there's some fact checking going on. We'll have it for you here, too, Kyra. CNN.com/healthcare.
PHILLIPS: Thanks, Josh.
LEVS: You got it.
PHILLIPS: And you can see President Obama's speech right here, live from the Best Political Team on Television, 8 p.m. Eastern, 5:00 Pacific, only on CNN.
Her terrified voice was the star witness. A woman calls 911, pleading to be saved from her kidnapper. Help didn't come and her life was lost. But out of that botched call, her husband found a calling, and you're going to hear from him.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Denise Amber Lee, a young mother of two. Did she have to die? She was kidnapped last year in Florida and did everything she could to save her life. Even in the car with the man who's about to kill her, she had the presence of mind to take his cell phone and call 911. Listen.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
911 OPERATOR: Hello, hello.
(INAUDIBLE)
VOICE OF DENISE AMBER LEE: Please let me go! I want to see my family again. Please let me go. Please let me go.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Screaming to let her go. That call lasted six minutes and help never came. Denise's voice was the star of a murder trial that helped convict her killer. You think it's painful to hear? Imagine what Denise's husband felt like.
Nathan Lee is here now to talk about that call, that call that has become his cause. Good to see you, Nate.
NATHAN LEE, HUSBAND OF MURDER VICTIM AND 911 REFORM ADVOCATE: Hi, Kyra, how are you?
PHILLIPS: I'm all right, but I tell you, it's even hard for me to even listen to that 911 call. And you have listened to it far more than I have. I mean, what -- are you at a different point now that you have heard it so many times or does it still strike you the same way?
LEE: Well, I have only heard it at least two or three times now, so I really haven't heard it that much. But yes, it's the most horrible thing I could ever listen to any my entire life. I try not to hear it when I don't have to.
But it definitely convicted her killer, and it definitely got him the death penalty. She was definitely the key witness and the key detective in that whole case to get him caught and the evidence she left behind. It's just horrible to think what she was going through, but she's in heaven now and in a better place, and I'm just glad that we're able to start pushing forward to help reform the system that didn't save her.
PHILLIPS: And that's exactly what you're doing. We're going to talk more about that. Let me ask you -- in just a second. But let me ask you about Michael King, her killer. A jury has recommended death. What do you think about that?
LEE: Well, I don't -- I think it's going to be -- he's going to get off a lot easier than he deserves. But, you know, it's what we have in this country. It's a law that I think is important; I think the death penalty is important, and that's what he'll get. And the family's happy that he's not going to live the rest of his life in prison. Denise isn't here anymore. Nothing will bring her back, but I think justice is starting to be served. But the true justice, I think, is trying to help fix a system that failed her, like I just mentioned.
PHILLIPS: You know what? I thought -- and I'm for full disclosure here, I thought that you had heard that 911 call many more times. I didn't realize that you only heard it twice, and this might have been possibly your third. And we were going to air it in it's entirety, but I don't think I want to do that because it's making both of us uncomfortable in many ways. And if that's all right with you, I'm going to leave it to folks if they want to hear it to go to CNN.com.
And how about you and I push forward like you want to do, and I'll just let folks know, it just wasn't your wife's six-minute phone call, but there was another witness that was on the phone with 911 for nine minutes. They saw her in the backseat of that car, pounding on the window, screaming for help. They were telling 911 where she was, what streets she was crossing, what this car looked like. Apparently there was a squad car just a mile away.
So, I know that you have been very supportive of 911 operators; you know it's a good thing. But what happened there that is the most frustrating thing to you, and what do you think you can do now to change that botched system?
LEE: Well, you know, 911 right now is a patchwork of technology, training standards throughout the entire country, and unfortunately, different areas where we live, things are going to be different.
And that's one of the things we're trying to focus on to get everything uniform and to create a -- in Florida, creating a state standard and throughout the country, hopefully, a national standard.
Basically in this case, the information that was sent to the 911 center never got dispatched. Procedures weren't followed. There was a communications breakdown. And ultimately, could have, in my mind, 100 percent could have saved my wife's life. And I wouldn't be here right now if that was the case.
PHILLIPS: You know what? You wouldn't. Let me ask you, did you ever have a chance to talk to those 911 operators? Was there ever a meeting or a conversation or anything between you and them or their superiors?
LEE: Yes, the chief deputy at the time, which is now the sheriff, tried to rationalize everything with me and my father-in-law, who, my father-in-law ironically worked for that sheriff's office for 26 years now.
And tried to shrug it off to make it seem like it wasn't a big deal. I have since filed civil litigation against them. I think anybody would. It's completely ridiculous that you -- they were looking for Denise, they finally found her. Jane Kowalski, who was the caller, located her on the busy road, U.S.41, and they never relayed the information. And I tell you, that's going to be the hardest thing out of everything to tell my kids, the fact that we were that close to seeing her again, and...
PHILLIPS: How are the kids doing? You have two beautiful children.
LEE: You know, I see Denise in them every time I look at them. The most tragic part of this thing they don't have their mom anymore. They're doing great, though. They're three and two now, Noah and Adam, they're two bundles of joy. And I know the family wishes we could just spawn them into, like, 15 different kids so everyone could have them all the time because they just bring smiles to your face. But they have Denise in them, and that brings me a lot of comfort.
PHILLIPS: Your wife is definitely living through them. From what I hear, they're pretty fabulous kids.
LEE: They are, they're good.
PHILLIPS: I want to go ahead and talk about the Web site before we let you go, Nate, if you don't mind. It's deniseamberlee.org. It's a foundation that you set up, and it explains exactly what happened to your wife and what happened with the botched system, the 911 system and how you're trying to push forward and make changes.
What else -- I know a lot of people have been driven to this Web site and have been talking about it throughout the day, even on the radio, and a lot of people want to know what they can do?
LEE: Well, the best thing they can do is just become a member of our Web site and if they want to contribute to our Web site, donate, obviously we're nonprofit in a very tough economy. I'm traveling all over the country.
I have formed an amazing partnership with the 911 industry to try to help, you know, improve the national training standards throughout the country. And we're really making some amazing progress, and I really think, hopefully following in the steps of John Walsh in the whole Missing Children's Act.
So, we're doing some great things, forming some federal legislative standards that we're going to try to take up to Capitol Hill hopefully during within the next couple of sessions of Congress. It's a good thing. It's a nice, turning a negative into a positive and it's good.
PHILLIPS: Absolutely. You stay strong. I really admire what you're doing, Nate, thanks for talking with me today.
LEE: Thank you, Kyra. I appreciate it.
PHILLIPS: All right.
Well, did police miss a chance to stop a serial killer before he struck again? Walter Ellis is accused of nine murders around Milwaukee. He's a former prisoner who should have given a DNA sample under state law. It should have been collected before he got out of prison eight years ago, prior to the last murder. Police have credited DNA testing for his recent arrest.
She's the tennis sensation who's capturing everyone's attention except for management at the Marriott Marquis in Times Square. Apparently, Melanie Oudin had to switch hotels because her reservation ran out. The 17-year-old said she didn't expect to make it so far in the U.S. Open, so the room wasn't in her name, so the Marriott didn't even know that she was there. She plays in the quarterfinals tonight, and we heard that she did find a room somewhere.
And Garrison Keillor, the author, humorist and radio personality, is in the hospital recovering from a minor stroke. The Mayo Clinic tells us that he was admitted Sunday. But today, he's up, moving, talking, even working on his laptop. That's not surprising. The clinic expects to release him on Friday. Keillor is 67 years old and hopes to resume his normal schedule next week.
Nearly eight years ago, two planes came crashing out of the sky and smashed into a Pennsylvania field. Terrorists were at the controls with dozens of innocents on board. Today, lawmakers are honoring the victims of United 93 and the others lost on 9/11.
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PHILLIPS: Well, it sounds like the start of the worst romantic comedy of all time. It's the old boy-meets-girl story, complicated by aggravated robbery. Police say Steven Bennett was one of three men who robbed a couple in Columbus Sunday night. But then he allegedly went back to the woman's house and asked her for a date. She played coy while her cousin called the police. They arrested Bennett. His accomplices are still at large.
Team Sanchez back there working on our next hour of CNN NEWSROOM. Rick, he sure had a lot of gumption, or were you not listening? Because every time I come to you, you act like you're working -- like you're busy working.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: You know, I wish I could tell you that I wasn't...
PHILLIPS: You need to put your mike on.
SANCHEZ: ... but I was. You're serious? You mean it fell off?
PHILLIPS: Good grief.
SANCHEZ: I got it now.
PHILLIPS: Actually, you weren't paying attention, you didn't put it on.
SANCHEZ: I get so wrapped up in this journalism thing, it makes me crazy.
PHILLIPS: Everybody's laughing out here. I'm laughing too, guys.
SANCHEZ: Hey, listen, I got two things for you today, Kyra.
First of all, there's a U.S. Congresswoman who's heard saying something that I think she might have some explaining to do about. One of these Berther (ph) people comes up and says that the president of the United States is constitutionally unsound to be president, suggests that the president shouldn't be there because it's not right and he's violating the Constitution. Of course, all of this has been proven to be falsehoods, it's been disproven, but nonetheless, the Congresswoman then whispers to her, and you're going to hear this on the tape, "I agree with you, but the courts don't." That's what she says.
It's weird, it's almost -- some would argue, as they watch this, that it's a little unbecoming a Congresswoman to say something like that. We're going make that point. We're going to let you see the video and let you decide for yourself.
But one story that I think Americans too often don't concentrate on, which is important. OK, the president's going to be talking tonight and going through the whole health care reform strategy that he has. Is it really his strategy? Is it really his health care reform? Is he really the guy in power? Because some people would argue that you know who's really in power? The lobbyists, the people who control the health care industry, the people in the insurance company.
Let me tell you what CNN is reporting that we're going to start our newscast with. $375 million, that's how much has been given to influence this health care debate since we started. This is only in the last eight months. And by golly, guess what? That's more money than has ever been spent to influence any legislation or to influence any legislation in the history of the United States. That's important. That's the kind of thing that we're glad to be talking about today.
PHILLIPS: All right, Rick, we'll see you in a little bit.
SANCHEZ: There you go.
PHILLIPS: All eyes on Apple today. The company just unveiled upgrades to its iPods and iPhones. But for many Apple followers, the biggest news of all is the presence of CEO, Steve Jobs. Susan Lisovicz, how did he look?
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPODENT: He looks thin. He looks thin and that's understandable given the trauma he's been through, including a liver transplant. But to see Steve Jobs on the stage was a great thrill.
Apple's known for great theater. The lights dimmed, the music cranked, out with the Rolling stones, "It's only rock 'n roll, but I like it." But onstage wasn't Mick Jaggers, it was Steve Jobs, and what followed was sustained standing ovations. Jobs had not made a public appearance since last fall. He had taken a six-month medical leave of absence, he thanked everyone in the community for the support that he's received. He says he's loving every day back at work and he's urging everyone to consider organ donation, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Wow. Oh, my gosh, that's a heartwrencher.
LISOVICZ: It is.
PHILLIPS: But what a great message.
LISOVICZ: He's alive today because of a person, unnamed person in their 20s, who died in a car accident and has given the gift of life to Steve jobs.
PHILLIPS: And you can actually fill it out on your license, you can say, donate my organs. I do it.
LISOVICZ: I do it as well.
PHILLIPS: I knew, I had a feeling.
All right. Wow, that was a little bit of a sobering message there. What about big developments on the product side?
LISOVICZ: Yes, that too. A lot of upgrades to the iPod, whether it's new colors, more storage, faster, if I had to pick one, I would say the Nano has the most upgrades and has a video camera, a pedometer to track your footsteps and an FM radio.
Also, there's a whole version of iTunes, includes 30,000 ring tones, if that is your thing. All kinds of stuff to personalize your play list, for instance. More incentives to buy albums as opposed to songs. It will allow five computers in one home to share music, video, and other content. So a lot of stuff, some better prices, just in time for back to school. And the holidays. Kyra.
PHILLIPS: I just can't keep up with all this stuff. I want to go back to the more simple days, the pay phone.
LISOVICZ: You mean vinyl?
PHILLIPS: Writing letters. Vinyl. Exactly. I want to go old school on means of communication.
LISOVICZ: That is why I am so happy a software consultant lives upstairs.
PHILLIPS: Great to see you, Susan.
LISOVICZ: Likewise.
PHILLIPS: Eight years ago Friday, lawmakers evacuated the Capitol as our nation was plunged into the kind of tragedy that we have never seen before. Now as the 9/11 anniversary draws near, lawmakers pay tribute to the lives lost in the worst terrorist attack in our country's history. We're going to take you there.
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PHILLIPS: Happening right now on Capitol Hill, remembering the worst terrorist attack in U.S. history. Lawmakers will pay tribute to the thousands of Americans whose lives were taken eight years ago this Friday.
I'm of course talking about 9/11. There will be a plaque dedication ceremony for the victims of United Airlines Flight 93. The jet crashed in rural Pennsylvania after passengers commandeered the aircraft from the terrorists. All 40 people aboard that plane perished, but their sacrifice may have saved thousands of lives.
We'll be back here tomorrow from 1:00 to 3:00 Eastern time. Thank you for joining us, Rick Sanchez takes it from here.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Say it ain't so. There's an incredible turn in the mass murder that began with this call.
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VOICE OF GUY HEINZE, JR.: The people's beat, everybody's dead.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
SANCHEZ: Police say he did it, but now we're learning how he did it. It's a jaw dropper.
So is this. Never before in the history of the U.S. has so much been spent to influence a debate. It's official. Lobbyists, television ads and political donations top $375 million. Grassroots effort? Yes, right.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's the glass busting, hopefully the tank won't blow.
SANCHEZ: Incredible to watch, but why is the guy taking these pictures watching instead of helping?
And look at this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you all right?
SANCHEZ: Real reporting from Afghanistan, the war zone becomes part of your national conversation, for Wednesday, September 9, 2009.
