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No to Obama, Yes to Bush; Inside Afghanistan: Patrol base Jaker; '30 Second Pitch'
Aired September 10, 2009 - 13:59 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 into the next hour, 46.3 million Americans, roughly equal to the combined populations of California and Georgia, the Census Bureau says that's how many people went without health insurance for all of 2008. It's a jump of roughly 600,000 for 2007.
That data came out hours after President Obama's prime-time address to Congress and came up today in follow-up remarks to the American Nurses Association.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: One part of the problem is the uninsured. And this morning, the Census Bureau released new data showing not only that the poverty rate increased last year, the highest rate since the early 1990s, but also that the number of uninsured rose in 2008. And we know from more up-to-date surveys that since the recession intensified last September, the situation's grown worse. Over the last 12 months, it's estimated that the ranks of the uninsured has swelled by nearly six million people.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: In his speech last night, the president laid out his top priorities for reform -- improve the coverage of people who have it, make coverage available and affordable for people who don't, and don't add to the deficit.
We're used the post-speech spin, but who could have predicted the whirlwind that was stirred up by two little words, words the president didn't even say? The speaker, as you know doubt heard, was a congressman you probably never heard of before last night.
Listen closely to the president being heckled by South Carolina Republican Joe Wilson.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: There are also those that claim our reform would insure illegal immigrants. This, too, is false. The reforms I'm proposing would not apply to those who are here illegally.
REP. JOE WILSON (R), SOUTH CAROLINA: You lie!
OBAMA: It's not true.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Well, Wilson promptly put out a paper apology and spoke in person in a calmer voice this morning.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WILSON: Well, I, last night, heard from the leadership that they wanted me to contact the White House and state that my statements were inappropriate. I did.
I'm very grateful that the White House, in talking with them, they indicated that they appreciated the call and that we needed to have a civil discussion about the health care issues. And I certainly agree with that.
I will tell you this -- that is was spontaneous. It was when he stated, as he did, about not covering illegal aliens when I knew we had those amendments. And I say that respectfully, and we need to discuss the issues, and I'm happy to do that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Then just a little later, the president turned the other cheek.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OBAMA: Yes, I do. I'm a big believer that we all make mistakes. He apologized quickly and without equivocation, and I'm appreciative of that.
I do think that, as I said last night, we have to get to the point where we can have a conversation about big important issues that matter to the American people without vitriol, without name calling, without the assumption of the worst in other people's motives.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Well, if there's an upside here, it's got to be the war chest of Wilson's Democratic challenger in next year's election. According to the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, Rob Miller has actually raked in $200,000 in contributions just since Wilson's outburst.
Well, enough about the heckling. What about the speech?
A CNN/Opinion Research Poll of people who watched it found that two-thirds support the president's plan, just over 53 percent backed it before the speech. Also, three-quarters say they now think Congress will pass most of the president's proposals.
Now, keep in mind, the poll reflects only the opinions of those who watched the speech, and that audience was more Democratic than the country as a whole.
Think back to Monday now and the president's speech to school kids. Remember those school districts that refused to show the speech in classrooms, claiming that the content was partisan or otherwise inappropriate? Well, one of those districts has no problem sending students out of school to hear a speech by former President Bush.
We get that story now from reporter Chris Hawes of CNN affiliate WFAA in Dallas.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PASTOR DWIGHT MCKISSIC, CORNERSTONE BAPTIST CHURCH: And I was just baffled when I learned that.
CHRIS HAWES, REPORTER, WFAA (voice-over): It describes an "amazing opportunity," speeches by both former President George W. Bush and former first lady Laura Bush. AISD students will not miss out on this event. In two weeks, a select group of 500 to 600 fifth graders will be bused to hear the speeches at Cowboys Stadium. It's part of an education program's kickoff that includes players and other speakers.
(on camera): So why interrupt the day to go to the event at Cowboys Stadium?
VERONICA SOPHER, ARLINGTON IND. SCHOOL DISTRICT: We actually have a scheduled field trip that was scheduled several months ago.
HAWES (voice-over): By contrast, district spokesperson Veronica Sopher tells us AISD learned of President Obama's speech last week, after lesson plans were already in place.
Pastor McKissic is not buying it.
MCKISSIC: It's such an inconsistency. It's so blatantly obvious that there's favoritism and partiality in how these two situations are being handled.
HAWES: We contacted Arlington ISD school board members about the decision. Only Wayne Ogel (ph) responded, saying, "Sometimes we go to the zoo. Sometimes we go to the aquarium. Sometimes we have a unique opportunity like this we get to go to."
The pastor and district do agree on one point -- students should still hear the Bushes speak.
MCKISSIC: Denying that opportunity to me would be equally as wrong as denying an opportunity to hear Barack Obama. And as my mama told me, two wrongs wouldn't make a right. I don't know how you can make a right.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: All right. Well, CNN has just received this statement from the Arlington School District. And here's it's take. It's a little long, so bear with me.
"While President Obama's address was not shown live, the decision was made to record the speech so that teachers could utilize it as an structural resource at a time appropriate to the district's curriculum. By Tuesday afternoon, students and parents alike were able to access the recorded speech on the district's Web site."
"Several months ago, the North Texas Super Bowl Host Committee invited 28 fifth grade classes to attend a field trip to the new Dallas Cowboys Stadium, where they will hear details of what will be one of the largest youth education programs in Super Bowl history. Students will also hear from business and community leaders throughout North Texas, legendary Dallas Cowboys, and the 43rd president of the U.S., George W. Bush, and Mrs. Laura Bush, the honorary chairs for the youth education program. Parentses of students in the randomly selected classes must grant written permission to participate in the event, as is the practice with any field trip."
It's nearly eight years to the day after 9/11, the attack that put U.S. troops in Afghanistan. Let's take a closer look at what's happening there now.
NATO is catching some heat for a rescue mission. A British journalist was saved from Taliban captors, but his Afghan colleague was killed and his body was left behind. And that's leading some Afghans to claim that they feel like second-class citizens in their own country.
A British commando, along with a woman and child, were also killed. And last month's presidential election, it's still not resolved.
Votes from five polling stations declared invalid, tainted by fraud. President Hamid Karzai has just over 54 percent of the vote, enough for now to avoid a runoff.
And CNN's Anderson Cooper sending us reports from the battle zone all this week. He's on the front lines, and so are you.
Now he's going to show us how the stakes and the risks are as high as they ever were for American servicemen and women. Right now, he takes us to Patrol Base Jaker. And if you don't know what it's like to be a Marine in Afghanistan, this will be a real eye-opener. It's far from home in every way you can imagine.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Patrol base Jaker may not be much to look at, but for the Marines of the 1st Battalion, 5th Regiment, it's become a home.
(on camera): You may have heard stories of U.S. forces living overseas on huge bases that have all the comforts of home -- movie theaters, convenience stores, fast-food restaurants. Patrol base Jaker is nothing like that. There are about 50 Marines here at any given time, and the conditions they face are extremely difficult.
(voice-over): Temperatures here can reach 120 degrees, but there's no air-conditioning in tents, no respite from the heat and dust.
(on camera): The first thing you notice when you get into Camp Jaker is this dust. The Marines call it moon dust. It's a fine powder that coats everything and gets everywhere, into weapons, in clothing, even food. There's nothing you can do about it.
(on camera): How do you cope with the dust?
MARINE SGT. REILLY STYBORSKI, PATROL BASE JAKER: It is what it is, I think. You can't beat it, so you just go with it.
COOPER: You just give into it?
STYBORSKI: You surrender.
COOPER (voice-over): Nothing seems to bother Sergeant Reilly Styborski. He's had to deal with a lot more than just dust.
(on camera): You have been hit by two IEDs?
STYBORSKI: Two IEDs, yes.
COOPER: Does that make you very lucky or very unlucky?
STYBORSKI: I go with lucky.
COOPER (voice-over): Lance Corporal James Stevens wasn't feeling quite so lucky. When we met him, he was burning excrement, a dreaded assignment, especially in the heat.
(on camera): Of all the jobs, this is probably the worst one here.
LANCE CPL. JAMES STEVENS, PATROL BASE JAKER: Yes. I mean, the smelliest one. So...
COOPER: The smelliest one.
STEVENS: Yes. It stinks.
COOPER: Did you anger somebody and they assigned you this, or...
STEVENS: No. I was just coming over...
COOPER: You were in the wrong place at the wrong time?
STEVENS: Yes, wrong place at the wrong time.
COOPER (voice-over): Around the clock, patrols come in and out, Marines move supplies. There's constant movement at Jaker.
STYBORSKI: You just do the work and that's it. You do your job, and that's it. You go to bed, wake up, do you job.
COOPER (on camera): That's what it's like 24 hours a day, seven days a week? STYBORSKI: Yes. No Burger King, no coffee bean.
COOPER (voice-over): There is food, of course, but it's all prepackaged, meals ready to eat.
As for leisure activities, a few old weights and a sledgehammer is the gym. For golfers, the whole place is a sand trap.
There is no privacy here, no place to simply take a break.
(on camera): The bathroom facilities here are primitive, to say the least. There are pipes in the ground, which are -- well, it's obvious what the pipes are for. And then the toilets, there's four of them. They're communal.
(voice-over): Up in the guard tower, Tim Myers (ph) admits he often gets frustrated, but being here, being a Marine, is a dream come true.
TIM MYERS (ph), PATROL BASE JAKER: I just wanted to do it since I was a little kid.
COOPER (on camera): Do you feel like you're doing something good here?
MYERS: Yes.
COOPER (voice-over): Despite all the hardships of life on a small combat outpost, there is a feeling of accomplishment and the bonds of brotherhood.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This place is actually a nice home.
COOPER: Anderson Cooper, CNN, Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: CNN Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta is also in Afghanistan. He's been following the progress of a 4-year-old boy who tried to get away from the fighting and ended up with severe head injuries.
Look for an update tonight, 10:00 Eastern, on "360," as Sanjay, Anderson and Michael were sent back to put together some pretty remarkable stories from the battle zone.
Here at home, there are more than two million job openings nationwide. It sounds like a lot, but is it? We're going to dig deeper and find out who's hiring.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, a quick update now in the housing crunch.
RealtyTrac says the number of repossessed homes fell nearly 13 percent last month compared to July. It's not clear if that means government aid programs are working or if bank s are merely delaying the inevitable.
On a related note, one in every 357 U.S. homes received a foreclosure filing last month. That's a decline of half a percentage point from the month before.
And there's one big reason why people are still losing their homes -- because they're losing their jobs. New numbers out today show that there were half a million new faces in the unemployment line last week.
(BUSINESS REPORT)
PHILLIPS: Misery definitely loves company. So, if you're looking for a job right now, you may have heard of this group -- Pink Slip Mixers. It's a way for jobless people to actually socialize and network to find work, and these mixers have spread across the country -- no surprise there -- and guess what? The guy who started it all, Edwin Duterte, is out of work himself.
So, we have invited him to sell his skills in our "30 Second Pitch." He's going to have his own pink slip party right now, and we're crossing our fingers for him.
Edwin joins us now live from San Francisco.
So, Edwin, can you hear me OK?
EDWIN DUTERTE, JOB SEEKER: I sure can.
PHILLIPS: OK, good. I wanted to make sure you're plugged in with me.
All right. So, now, are you sure this is not just an opportunity to find a hot date? I mean, there really is a purpose here for work?
DUTERTE: Yes, there's a purpose there for work, and I think our events are a way for people to get to meet people, you know, and just have a lot of fun. Because I think it's important for employers to know who you are, aside with what you know.
PHILLIPS: So, tell me what you were doing, what happened, and how you came up with this idea.
DUTERTE: Well, what I was doing prior is I was a commercial real estate lender. I was a middle market. I financed construction projects between $2 million and $15 million. And then the banking crash started in 2008 and I was let go from the banking industry.
PHILLIPS: OK. So there you were, you lost this great job, you were doing really well.
Tell me how you came up with this mixer idea and how you actually got people who were out of work and, you know, struggling for money to take the time to, you know, spend money on gas, spend money on whatever it costs to be a part of this, to buy a new outfit. I mean, you know, these things are pricey. DUTERTE: Right. Well, I started it because I went to the L.A. Economic Summit last year in 2008, and they were predicting that there was going to be a recession, if not a major recession, in 2009. So, as soon as I heard that, I decided that if banking is going to suffer, if commercial real estate is going to suffer, if construction lending is going to suffer, I better do something about it.
And there I go. I created PinkSlipMixers.com for people to have a way to meet other mid-to-upper-level professionals, because let's face it, job fairs are for entry level. And it's a cattle call. And I wanted to make this an experience where a lot of professionals meet in a social environment, because everybody wants to meet people and they want to work with people that they know and like.
PHILLIPS: And you want to help each other, inspire each other as well.
All right. Are you ready for your "30 Second Pitch?"
DUTERTE: I'm ready for my "30 Second Pitch."
PHILLIPS: OK. We're going to put your e-mail up. And Edwin, take it away.
OK. Well, my name is Edwin Duterte, and I'm a social media P.R. professional. I think every company needs a way to integrate their Web site into a comprehensive social media program.
I have social proof, as evidenced through my PinkSlipMixers.com concept, that was built on community participation. I say Web site content and blogging is your company's credibility, but your social media is your company's personality that people buy into.
If your company needs to share your personality with your community, you need to hire me. What I did for PinkSlipMixers.com, I can do for you.
Follow me on Twitter, I'm at Pink Slips. And send me an e-mail and hire me right away.
PHILLIPS: All right. Oh, you got the double bell. You got a few extra seconds.
DUTERTE: Oh, I got a double bell.
PHILLIPS: That's all right. That's OK. Great job.
DUTERTE: Appreciate it.
PHILLIPS: Keep us posted and let us know what happens. All right, Edwin?
DUTERTE: Great. Appreciate it, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Thank you.
DUTERTE: Bye-bye.
PHILLIPS: All right. Top stories now.
Police in New Haven, Connecticut, are looking for a missing Yale grad student who was to be married on Sunday. Twenty-four-year-old Annie Lee hasn't been seen or heard from since she was last spotted Tuesday on campus. Friends describe her as conscientious, energetic, excited about her upcoming nuptials.
So, if you have any information, you're asked to contact your local police department.
Meanwhile, the University of Southern California on the lookout for this vehicle. We're going to show a picture of it now. It was actually spotted on campus in just the past two weeks.
Do we have a picture of it?
OK. Well, we have a picture of the vehicle. All right. It's kind of hard to say to look out for the vehicle when we don't have the picture. Apologize for that. But you can go online and definitely see it there.
Two men are actually reported to offer rides to female students, suggesting that it's a new, ,free service. That van actually looks exactly like the vans there on the USC campus. School officials are saying to watch out for the campus cruiser vans which escorts students by request. There's a big difference between the one that these two men are driving.
Well, staying with California, police are expanding their probe of Phillip Garrido, accused of holding Jaycee Dugard captive for 18 years. They've seized a computer, videotapes and also DVDs from a former business associate of Garrido's. Police only say that the search is part of a larger investigation into the 58-year-old convicted sex offender. Garrido has pleaded not guilty to the 29 felonies that he's facing in the 1991 kidnapping of Dugard.
Now, back in the day, the Greeks thought that the ferryman rode you to the afterlife in a rickety old boat. Well, how do you think that they would feel about a '73 Pontiac? I'm going to tell you about one man who truly went out in style.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, you can say a man in Phoenix is driving police bananas, and that's not Curious George you're about to see behind the wheel of that car.
Police say that he's a driver who's been caught speeding by traffic cameras not once, not twice, but 37 times. And he's always got a mask on. So, police apparently do know who he is, but prosecuting these cases is tough if you just can't prove who's driving the car.
And RIP stands for "Rest in Pontiac" in South Carolina. Check this out.
Ninety-year-old Lonny Holloway (ph) wanted to be buried in his '73 Catalina behind the wheel with his hat on. And by George, he got his wish and he took it to his grave. The 90-year-old man, V-8 engine, six feet under. Oh, and by the way, his guns are in there, too. He didn't want them to fall into the wrong hands, after all.
(WEATHER REPORT)
PHILLIPS: Meanwhile, the University of Southern California is on the lookout for a vehicle spotted on campus just the past few weeks. Two men inside reportedly offer rides to female students suggesting it's a new free service. Well, school officials say that this van looks awfully similar to their campus cruiser vans which escorts students by request.
So, once again, students at USC, especially the females, need to pay attention to that picture.
It's an ad designed to stir up controversy, and let me tell you, you haven't seen controversy until you've seen this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Sex, AIDS and Adolf Hitler. Three elements that mixed together are creating one heck of a controversy in Germany and beyond.
Let's get straight to CNN's Diana Magnay in Berlin, working our story for us. Hi, Diana.
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. Yes, this ad campaign certainly is causing a real stir, both here in Germany and internationally. Before I tell you anymore about why, judge for yourself. Let's take a look at what's involved.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MAGNAY (voice-over): It's a fairly standard sex scene like you see in the movies. Lithe bodies in the throws of erotic passion. Sexy stuff until you see who the leading man in this particular love scene is: Adolf Hitler. The tag line to this ad: AIDS is a mass murder.
"Basically, we wanted to give the virus itself a face, and this cannot be a beautiful face," says the ad's creator, Doug Zidds (ph). "And that's why we hit on Adolf Hitler, he says.
The clip's designed for a German AIDS lobby group called Rainbow to remind people to use protection. It's pegged to the world's AIDS Day on December 1. Josef Stalin and Saddam Hussein also feature.
But some other AIDS awareness groups say the campaign is sensationalist and counterproductive.
It unconsciously says there are good and guilty murderers who pass the virus on, and that's not the case, says Joerg Litwinschuh from the German AIDS Help Group. Groups like Litwinschuh's in are asking Rainbow to pull the campaign. The ad agency itself says it never expected this kind of attention.
Of course, we expected some reactions and we have been prepared for this, but not for 40,000 to 50,000 clicks per day, says Dirk Silz. YouTube has removed the ad from its site, but Rainbow says it's message must be heard, that the ad will save lives.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MAGNAY: Now the group behind this campaign, Kyra, say that awareness of AIDS has fallen even though the illness itself is increasing in scope. And if you think about it, there's 28 million people who have already died as a result of this disease. So, it is one of the biggest mass killers in history.
On the other side, of course, those people who are AIDS suffers and those people who carry HIV but haven't developed full-blown AIDS say this is far too simplistic a vision and also, we find it deeply offensive in any way to be associated with Hitler, Stalin, Saddam Hussein, three of the most terrible dictators that have ever been, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: And let me just ask you, there in Germany. I mean, obviously the sight and the thought of Adolf Hitler is not a comfortable thing in that country. And there are laws that forbid Nazi symbols in Germany. Does this fall into that in any way?
MAGNAY: It doesn't; this has not been censored as such. It's up to individual TV stations to decide whether or not they're going to run it. As you said, there are laws against certain Nazi symbols, the swastika for example, but this doesn't fall into that category.
That said, one of the networks we spoke with today, RTL, had aired a clip of this online campaign on one of its news programs just to see what the reaction was. The reaction was so strongly opposed to running the ad that they decided to pull it from their air and from their sister networks. So, it's definitely causing a little bit of a stir. Not universal censorship by any sort of authoritative government body, but certainly self-censorship amongst any of the channels that might be airing it, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Diana Magnay, appreciate you covering the story for us.
You know, ads, commercials, public service campaigns, for that matter, news broadcasts have to get your attention to be effective. But it's also possible to alienate the people you're trying to influence. Joining me now with opposite views of the AIDS mass murderer campaign, Kelly McCann, CEO of AIDS Foundation Houston. And Mark Cloutier, the CEO of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation.
And Kelly, let's start with you. What do you think?
KELLY MCCANN, AIDS FOUNDATION HOUSTON: When I first viewed this ad, I'll admit, I was shocked and my jaw dropped. But I was shocked by the power of the message, not because the message was offensive. I thought that while controversial, this was an important way of getting awareness of HIV increased and also a way of really driving home the point that AIDS is a killer.
PHILLIPS: Would you want to see it here in the U.S.?
MCCANN: Yes, I would. I know that the sexual images would probably limit the audience here in the United States. But in an era where many Americans are experiencing prevention fatigue and they're tuning out HIV messages, I would like to see this aired because this is an ad that certainly gets your attention and gets you talking about this very important topic.
PHILLIPS: Mark Cloutier, you know, it's a topic that needs to be talked about, it needs to be addressed. You're the policy guy that worked with Barbara Boxer that was involved in putting together the legislation to get it out there to make a difference. What do you think of this way of exposing HIV/AIDS and the horrors behind it?
MARK CLOUTIER, CEO, SAN FRANCISCO AIDS FOUNDATION: Kyra, I actually think this ad is very destructive. The good part is it's provoking, it may get people's attention. What you have - you have a duty, though, when you get people's attention to help them understand the behaviors that protect themselves.
So, putting aside the issue of that -- the Hitler image makes people who have HIV into victims or perpetrators, which again is the wrong message. We don't want to say that people who have HIV are mass murderers. That alienates them, it's the wrong message, it stigmatizes HIV further.
Moreover, when we get people's attention, we need to help them figure out how they protect themselves. We need to tell them that using condoms is an effective school for HIV prevention, and that's not in this message.
PHILLIPS: So, Kelly, with your experience - because I think it's fair to say this is pretty scary to look at. I have to say it made me extremely uncomfortable. Have you seen scare tactics work when it comes to trying to get people to not have unprotected sex?
MCCANN: While I won't say necessarily scare tactics, because I don't necessarily qualify this ad as a scare tactic. I think it is a very controversial but a creative and an innovative way of delivering an HIV awareness message. And that's what I think is the key.
You know, we have 50,000 or more new HIV infections in our country every year. I think it's important to devise a variety of messages that will reach all kinds of people. And that's the most important thing. And one other thing I'd like to add, I don't believe that this ad maligns people living with AIDS. I don't think this that ad puts people living with HIV on a par with Hitler.
Instead, I though this ad used very powerful images and a strong negative association to vilify AIDS, and I'm OK with this vilifying the disease. We need to declare war on AIDS. PHILLIPS: Interesting. What do you think about that, Mark?
CLOUTIER: We do need to declare war on AIDS, and the way to do that is not to, again, turn people into victims by it or to make people who transmit HIV perpetrators. It's to give people solutions about how they protect themselves and respect the dignity of other people. There's no way you can win this war by doing it in a negative fashion. We need to help people with positive messages that help them change their behavior and respect other people who are struggling with this disease.
PHILLIPS: Well, Mark, let me ask you this. OK, I hear what you're saying, prevention and positive messages and supporting people, totally get it. But tell me what has worked at this point. With such high numbers and such a high death toll, and the spread of HIV/AIDS, tell me what has worked or what is working right now that you see is making a difference in the way that you're saying that you support.
CLOUTIER: So, what is making a difference is that we know that condoms are highly effective, getting people to use condoms more frequently, every time they have sex is a proven prevention strategy/ Getting people tested to understand their HIV status so they can get in treatment if they're positive or engage in reducing risk behavior so they don't transmit HIV to others are very proven ways of reducing risk behavior and thereby attacking this disease that continues to ravage the United States.
As was said, about 50,000 cases of new HIV infections are occurring here. And we know how to prevent them.
PHILLIPS: Kelly, is that enough? Or -- my feeling is that you're going to support exactly what Mark said, but would that in addition to something like what we're seeing in Germany be the way to create more conversation, create more awareness, because it's truly been unbelievable, the type of attention that these PSAs have created. Even those that created the ads didn't expect it to go worldwide like it has and receive the 100,000 hits a day.
MCCANN: You're absolutely right and I do of course agree with all of those proven prevention strategies. But raising awareness and overcoming the complacency that I think a lot of people have developed because of new effective treatments for HIV, I think many people have developed a very complacent attitude about HIV.
And so they're not using condoms on a regular basis, they're not following through with safer sex practices. So, absolutely. Anything that will allow us to generate discussion, raise awareness, and sometimes even reach out and grab us and shake us into reality, frankly, we support that.
PHILLIPS: Well, it definitely grabs our attention. Final thought, Mark, because we got to go.
CLOUTIER: I want to fundamentally disagree that with anything, we should not do anything, we should do the things that have the biggest impact, that does get people's attention and drives them immediately to change their behavior.
PHILLIPS: Well, we're definitely talking about it, and that's a positive thing. Mark Cloutier and Kelly McCann, thanks to both of you very much.
MCCANN: Thank you.
PHILLIPS: All right. You bet.
Her run at the U.S. Open is over, but teen tennis phoneme Melanie Oudin's future is just beginning, and boy, does it look smashing.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Checking top stories. Presidential election results from five polling stations in Afghanistan have been tossed because of apparent fraud. The polls are in Patika province where incumbent president Hamid Karzai has strong support. Mr. Karzai has just over 54 percent of the vote based on results from about 92 percent of Afghanistan's polling stations. But more than 2,000 complaints of voter fraud are being investigated.
The murder trial of an Iowa man accused of killing a popular high school football coach is being delayed. A judge is deciding if the defendant is competent to stand trial. Mark Becker is accused of killing Arlington Parkersburg coach Ed Thomas. Defense psychologist testified today that Becker has paranoid schizophrenia and shouldn't be on trial. But a psychiatrist testified that Becker is competent.
President Obama picking up where he left off last night after his big speech, telling an audience of nurses today that the time for talk is winding down in the debate over health care reform. This morning, the government said the number of people without health insurance last year to 46.3 million, an increase of about 600,000 from the year before.
And all good things must come to an end. But for pro tennis star and new media darling Melanie Oudin, her unlikely run at the U.S. Open this week isn't so much an end, but a true beginning. CNN's Larry Smith joins me to explain.
And it's true. Obviously she wanted to take it all the way to the top. I think all of us wanted to see her take it to the top. She's 17, she's an amazing player, she is on her way.
LARRY SMITH, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT: Yes. This has been really exciting to see her and all the hard work that all these athletes put in. That's one thing that we miss -- we see it, whether it be football, tennis, basketball or golf, whatever it is. She spends four hours a day on the court, another hour after that in workouts, and had really sacrificed so much. Last night, I spent the evening with some of her closest fans at the club where she trains to become one of the best.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) LARRY SMITH, CNN SPORTS CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They were almost 900 miles away from Arthur Rasch Stadium, but they cheered as if they were in the stands. Melanie Oudin's impromptu fan club back home in suburban Atlanta seems to have grown by the hour. The girl next door turned international headliner in less than a week's time.
NANCY REBELO, MARKETING DIRECTOR, RACQUET CLUB OF THE SOUTH: We didn't know it was going to happen this quickly, but we knew it was going to happen. She's an absolute standout, and we knew it was just a matter of time.
SMITH: Oudin's model is "believe," and helped spark the deepest U.S. Open run by a American teenaged female in a decade. And uplifted fans both young and young at heart.
ANSLEY REYNOLDS, EIGHT-YEAR-OLD OUDIN FAN: (INAUDIBLE) and I hope to be just like her someday.
KATHLEEN BRADY, OUDIN FAN: She's awesome and she is powerful and she's -- it's an inspiration to so many young people.
CATHERINE MEYER, OUDIN FAN: She can believe in herself and she can win, I can do that too and I can believe in myself and I can reach my goals.
SMITH: But the magic ran out on this night. Oudin was done in by this Danish teenager, Caroline Wozniacki, who's having an impressive tournament of her own and joined in applauding the new American sensation.
CAROLINE WOZNIACKI, BEAT OUDIN AT U.S. OPEN: She had a lot of potential here, and I think the way she handled all the attention, I think she did very well. I think she has a great team around her, and I'm sure that she'll win many, many more matches in the future.
MELANIE OUDIN, LOST U.S. OPEN: I wanted to win more than anything. Losing isn't good enough, but I really think about it, and I really have had an incredible two weeks and I should be very proud of myself.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
SMITH: I love listening to her and her host match (ph) remarks. And she said it's been an exciting, unbelievable two weeks, I'm not a celebrity, I'm a normal kid and I have to go back now and just work harder. She's not satisfied with this, and that's the best thing.
PHILLIPS: And we got a chance to interview her on "AMERICAN MORNING." Let's take a little look at that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OUDIN: It's been hard, it's definitely different than what I'm used to. I'm used to just going out and playing tennis. But these two weeks have been so more than that. It's been lots of media and different things happening and people knowing who I am now and just a lot of things. But all in all it was good for me and it was a good learning experience.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SMITH: You know, one of the funny things last night -- I first met her three weeks ago when we did a story on her that we ran here on CNN. And the funny thing is, at the time, nobody was there. Last night they said, OK, don't ask about her boyfriend and don't ask about her work ethic. I said, well, I don't care about number one. Number two, I already know.
PHILLIPS: That's right. Kind of obvious. She's so well-spoken. I mean, you would love to have a 17-year-old that well spoken, that mature, that talented. She's a real gem. We'll be watching her career.
SMITH: She's been fun to watch.
Thanks, Larry. I don't blame you. It's been fun for us, too. Thanks.
SMITH: OK.
PHILLIPS: Straight ahead, another story that we have been watching. The horse is often called man's noblest companion. But there isn't a shred of nobility in the recent string of horse killings in South Florida. Prepare yourself for this one.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: All right, Rick Sanchez coming up in about eight minutes.
RICK SANCHEZ, CNN ANCHOR: Like a dog with a bone. That's what I'm like recently on some of these stories.
PHILLIPS: Throw me a bone and tell me what's coming up.
SANCHEZ: Here's what I'm excited about. Here's what I'm passionate about. CNN yesterday broke this story about just how much money is being spent by people who influence this debate. You know how much it is?
PHILLIPS: How much?
SANCHEZ: $375 million.
PHILLIPS: That's a lot of money.
SANCHEZ: That's more money than has ever been spent to influence any debate in the history of the United States. That's significant, and we're going to be talking about that.
But there's something else I'm going to be talking about today. Everybody's talking about this Joe Wilson character and how he said to the president, "You lie." That's what he said to the president. People now are apologizing, he's apologizing, but has anyone asked you, well, what was he talking about? And is there a possibility he might be right?
He's talking about illegal immigrants and whether illegal immigrants are going to be covered under this plan. It's time to fact check, wouldn't you say? That's exactly what we're going to do today at 3:00. We are going to fact-check whether illegal immigrants are going to be covered under Obama's plan. In other words, is the president not telling the truth?
PHILLIPS: Thank you, Mr. Sanchez.
SANCHEZ: It's always an absolute pleasure to be with you.
PHILLIPS: It may sound odd, but it's all too real and all too disturbing. Horse owners in South Florida dealing with something pretty tough to deal with, and it might actually shock you. It's pretty unexpected.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: All right, just want to warn you off the top that this story is pretty tough to watch. I"m talking about the recent string of horse killings in South Florida. This year, nearly 20 horses have been found slaughtered. The most recent being yesterday morning. It's got to be one of the most grizzly assignments that our John Zarrella has undertaken, and I got to warn you, this is a pretty disturbing report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN ZARRELLA, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The dirt road leads away from the ten-acre pasture where Yvonne Rodriguez last saw her horse alive.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Back in here, nobody would have ever seen them.
ZARRELLA: At the end of the road, next to a palm tree is where Geronimo was found, what was left of him. Rodriguez got the call from her dad.
YVONNE RODRIGUEZ, HORSE WAS KILLED: And he said don't come, because it's not very nice.
ZARRELLA: Geronimo had been slaughtered.
RODRIGUEZ: Not only was my horse stolen, he was butchered, OK? He was tied up to a palm tree.
ZARRELLA (on camera): So, all these are blood stains?
RODRIGUEZ: Yes. And from up here to down there, but Geronimo is the type of horse, that my goodness, if you had an apple in your hand, he was your best friend.
ZARRELLA (voice-over): The meat had been carved from his bones.
(on camera): This is part of Geronimo's mane?
RODRIGUEZ: Yes, it is.
ZARRELLA (voice-over): Animal rights organizations say Geronimo's death is part of a alarming, growing black market for horse meat in South Florida. Richard Cuto (ph) examines the remains of another slaughtered horse. He's an investigator with the SPCA.
RICHARD CUTO (ph), INVESTIGATOR, SPCA: I found a puncture wound under the chin. The horse bled out. It probably took a while for this horse to die. In most cases, the horses are actually butchered alive.
ZARRELLA: Police say they have seen cases of horses slaughtered for their meat in the past, but nothing to this level. While police can't confirm a black market exists, they're pretty sure these horse killings was motivated by profit.
CAPT. SCOTT ANDRESS, MIAMI-DADE COUNTY POLICE: It appears as though the offender's main goal was not the killing of the animal, but their main goal was whatever activity they were engaged in postmortem.
ZARRELLA: It's illegal in the United States to buy our sell horse meat, a delicacy in some Caribbean and Latin American nations, Cuto says it brings up to $40 a pound. But he says the buyers are paying a lot for meat that can make them sick.
CUTO: These animals, these horses see veterinarians on a monthly basis. They're being pumped with all types of drugs, antibiotics, steroids.
ZARRELLA: The horse Cuto examined had been led from its stall and killed a few feet away. Its foal in the next stall was left unharmed.
They are professionals, Cuto says, in the way the horses are butchered and their remains hidden. Yvonne Rodriguez can attest to that.
(on camera): This is part of the tarp they covered him with?
RODRIGUEZ: Yes. And (INAUDIBLE).
(END VIDEOTAPE0
ZARRELLA: Twenty horses now have been found, roughly 20 since January. Police say what they aren't clear on is whether this is one group or multiple groups that are engaged in this activity. But I can tell you, Kyra, out of those scenes and what people tell us is, it's barbaric what these people are doing and when you see it for yourself, it is barbaric.
PHILLIPS: Sick and twisted. We'll stay on top of the investigation. We appreciate you bringing it to us, John. Thanks.
That does it for us, we'll be back here tomorrow 1:00 to 3:00 Eastern time. I'm Kyra Phillips. Rick Sanchez takes it from here.
SANCHE: The illegal immigrant question that caused this Congressman to call the president a liar.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Would not apply to those who are here illegally.
SANCHEZ: Joe Wilson getting it from both sides. What is the illegal immigrant question? We wonder, what would happen in the House of Commons if someone had done the same?
Never before in the history of the U.S. has so much been spent to influence a debate. It's official. Lobbyists, television ads, political donations, topping $375 million in the health care debate. Grass roots effort? Yeah, right. And now the Supreme Court is considering giving corporations more power to influence.
Perez Hilton. He joins me, live and on set with news on Ellen Degeneres, American Idol, and the celebrity he calls la loca. Who he's talking about?
Also, the latest on the angry anti-Obama pastor.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm a chief architect.
And the Whisperer. All this and more on your national conversation for Thursday, September 10, 2009.
Hello, again, everybody, I'm Rick Sanchez with the next generation of news. This is a conversation, it is not a speech, and it's always your turn to get in involved. This is a big part of the news today.
