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Scott Wins Kennedy's Senate Seat
Aired January 20, 2010 - 12:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Time now to catch you up on what's happening at the top of the hour. I'm Don Lemon in CNN NEWSROOM today.
It's noon in Boston where Massachusetts Republican Senator-Elect takes aim at the president's agenda.
Noon in Port-au-Prince where earthquake survivors get another jolt as they search out survivors. We go in search of Haiti's government.
And it's 9:00 a.m. in southern California where another Pacific storm brings heavy rain and also some evacuations.
So, let's get started, shall we? The political wind shifts in Massachusetts, and they're feeling it in Washington. In a stunning upset, Republican Scott Brown wins the Senate seat held for decades by the late Ted Kennedy. The win has major implications for health care reform and the rest of President Barack Obama's agenda as well. Brown met with reporters in Boston within the last half hour, really just a few moments ago. He said he'll leave it to the pundits to determine the message voters were sending.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SCOTT BROWN (R), MASSACHUSETTS SENATOR-ELECT: I think it's important to know that the main thing that they want is good government back and to be part of the process. And I think they sent a very, very powerful message that business as usual is not going to be the way we do it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Brown defeated State Attorney General Martha Coakley, once considered to be a shoo-in. Coakley invoked Kennedy's memory as she conceded defeat.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARTHA COAKLEY (D), FORMER MASSACHUSETTS SENATE CANDIDATE: We will always remember our terrific Senator Ted Kennedy and his words, the work begins anew, the hope rises again and the dream lives on!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Well, the GOP win in Massachusetts in the Senate race there has Republicans revved up and Democrats really trying to regroup. What's going on? That's what they're wondering. For more on Scott Brown's victory and what it means, we'll bring in our national political correspondent, Jessica Yellin, in Boston.
Jessica, good to speak to you. I've been asking you this morning about what people are saying. Scott Brown spoke just moments ago. And I'm wondering, even in the room among people there, if there are others in the room, average citizens, if the feeling is different now because he's had his first press conference. He's handled himself nationally very well so far?
JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: He was quite comfortable up there and very conciliatory, Don. You know, he expressed tones of willingness to work with President Obama, willingness to go to Washington and see what reforms can be done. It's not a very anti- -- he did not attack the president, nor did he during the campaign and that's something that's important to point out, that while he clearly went after the president's health care plan and some of his policies, he stayed away from going after President Obama personally. And the White House certainly interprets that to mean that the president, at least is personally popular still in the state of Massachusetts and around the nation.
But this is a strong wake-up message for the Democrats nationally, as you say Republicans feeling very energized this morning. I've spoken to several national Republicans who really do feel the wind is in their sails now and Democrats who are hoping that a message gets out nationally, that it's angry voters who are going to the polls and they feel they need change more quickly. Frustration with the pace of change in Washington is the message that they think was delivered in last night's victory for the Republicans.
And so the bottom line message you hear from voters here in Massachusetts when I talk to folks is that they want Washington to focus on policies that will bring quick help to the extent they can on jobs, on improving the economy and on those kitchen-table issues that have as much direct impact as possible. Any other larger policy issues are more than secondary. They're a very distant second for these very frustrated voters.
LEMON: Yes. I think you bring up a very good point and we touched on this earlier, you know, you said angry voters. Maybe it's passionate, you know, maybe those vote -- those voters that have been able -- have been so passionate about what's been happening in the last year, like the people, the tea party folks, what have you. Really rallying around Scott Brown from outside of Massachusetts. Democrats did not get the message when it came to that and did not support Martha Coakley. And I'm wondering if -- how much effect, at all, that that's had on the campaign?
YELLIN: It's a great point, you know, the Coakley campaign was caught completely off-guard and flat-footed when the sort of tea party movement and outside activists came into the state and when they activated people within the state and really propelled Scott Brown. So, that's a mistake you can be sure other political elected officials will be paying attention to and trying to learn from for next year's November elections. But the other piece of this is that those same -- there were also energized voters are on the Democrat side only a year and a half ago when President Obama was elected. And Democrats have to be worried that they weren't activated. Why didn't they come out? Why didn't the machine get them up and at the polls? Now, the national Democrats will say, look, it's happened too late. We didn't have the time, but that is going to be a concern for Democrats. Where's the energy and how do they get it back, Don?
LEMON: Hey, you know, Jessica, we've got to run because I get to Haiti. But noodle on this for a little bit, the GOP as we talked about has been looking for a new star and at the very beginning of this, who knows what's going to happen in the next couple weeks and months. He's handling himself very well. They're looking for someone. He has a job and is about to make policy for the next couple of years. Sarah Palin who was believed to be the star before does not have a job anymore and therefore is not making policy, at least in government. So it's going to be interesting to see how this turns out. It also a story that's very similar to Senator Obama's story as well on the Democratic side, now on the Republican side. Noodle on that. We'll talk about it. So this is all very interesting. I can't wait to hear what you have to say.
Jessica Yellin, thank you.
YELLIN: All right.
LEMON: Let's turn now to Haiti where this second week of earthquake recovery started with a jolt. The strongest aftershock yet struck at dawn, a magnitude 6.1. It caused a whole lot of anxiety there, really. No word on more major damage, if there was any this morning.
The "USNS Comfort" has arrived. The state of the start hospital ship is already taking on patients including a young boy with a crushed pelvis who still has no idea what happened to his parents.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was very sad, and I think we're going to see a lot of those issues right now. We're going to see parents not knowing where their kids are and the kids not knowing where the parents are.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: More heartbreaking stories as aid continues to pour into the devastated country. Hundred of aid workers and troops are now on the ground doing what they can to care for survivors. The man coordinating the United Nations relief effort told CNN earlier this morning that things are really improving. Listen --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOHN HOLMES, FORMER BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO PARIS: We're beginning to get more supplies out, food, water, tents, but there is a major priority which is medical supplies, doctors, field hospitals. They're already four or five field hospitals operating who have come in since the emergency. Another four or five are on the way. It's very frustrating that it takes so long to get as many supplies and as many doctors and as many hospitals are needed, but, again, I think we are making progress. But I think there is a major issue here of people with those injuries who have got infected wounds who need operations, who are not getting as many as they can. That's a major priority for the next few days.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: We've seen some chaos over there as well, some chaos, not exactly sure what is going on. Some people are saying it's looting. Other are saying do you know what, it's really people who are struggling to survive for basic necessities like water and food. So security concerns are further complicating some of the efforts there to get lifesaving supplies to survivors in Haiti's capital. Our Chris Lawrence has that angle from the capital of Port-au-Prince.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRIS LAWRENCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tons of food, water and medical supplies stacked up at the Port-au-Prince airport. There's only one runway and the UN is now requiring any aid leaving the airport to coordinate with UN peacekeepers. Is fear slowing things down?
ALAN SCHNEIDER, ISRAAID: We knew there were concerns about security and apparently that's why they weren't leaving the airport perimeter.
LAWRENCE: Alan Schneider and a small medical group from Israel grabbed their gear and went straight to the nearest clinic. They worked alone at the soccer stadium for three days until the army arrived Tuesday.
SCHNEIDER: And I think some of the other forces maybe are just bogged down in red tape, bureaucracy, building that beautiful village out there in the airport.
LAWRENCE: To ease the bottleneck, another airport just opened 25 miles outside the capital, with a third expected to open in the Dominican Republic this week. Up to 5,000 U.S. troops will be on the ground to ease some group security fears and we hopped on one of the dozens of American helicopters now delivering aid to nine landing zones. They're giving the highest priority to water shipments like this one. The other problem? A fuel shortage. Jovenel Moise delivered 50,000 gallons from his water treatment plant until his generators and delivery trucks ran out of gas.
JOVENEL MOISE, WATER TREATMENT PLANT OWNER: We cannot buy diesel. We cannot find any people to give us diesel to make water to put diesel on the trucks to give water for the people!
LAWRENCE: The pier is a natural place to off-load fuel from ships, but it was damaged in the earthquake, so trucks are waiting up to 10 hours for diesel. The drivers are telling us that they've been prioritizing the trucks, so anyone that's bringing fuel to a hospital is being moved up to the front of the line, whereas the other trucks are being forced to wait. Navy divers examine the pier and the U.S. military expects to partially reopen two ports by the end of the week.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: That was our Chris Lawrence -- Lawrence reporting. Thanks, Chris, so much.
We have special coverage planned for this Friday. Wyclef Jean (ph) will join George Clooney and CNN's own Anderson Cooper in hosting "Home for Haiti." It's a global telethon to air commercial free Friday, 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
Massachusetts voters sent a powerful message yesterday. How are congressional leaders reacting today, the morning after? We'll get a live report from Capitol Hill. First though, our random moment in 90 seconds.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: All right. Our random moment of the day is about a weird visit and the unlikeliest of heroes. Grace Kraus, she says she came home to find a strange man lounging in her TV room. The unwelcome visitor had felt so at home, he'd not only taken a shower and cut his hair, he was making himself some fried chicken. No, he wasn't shy, but he was a little bit timid, listen to how she kept him at bay.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GRACE KRAUS, SUBDUED BURGLAR: When I first walked in the house, I could smell that something was being cooked, but I couldn't put the pan and the chicken together. He moved. I said, don't you move, because if you do, you're going to get my umbrella right across your head.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Good for Grace Kraus. Court documents showed he got in by smashing a window. Now he's facing burglary and other charges there.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: The Republican victory in Massachusetts, deprives Democrats of a 60th vote in the Senate and a filibuster-proof majority. That means Republicans can use Senate rules to squash the president's agenda. Liberal Democrats are very frustrated. One ridiculed House leaders for going ahead with health care meetings and as though nothing had changed at all.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REP. ANTHONY WEINER (D), NEW YORK: They're talking as if like what our deals are, what our negotiators are at the White House. And the last line is if pigs fly out of my ass or something like that. We've got to recognize we're in an entirely different scenario.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Straight now out to Capitol Hill now and Brianna Keilar.
So you heard Anthony Weiner there. So the ground has really shifted, shifted in a way that it is steadying Republicans, at least it appears to be and Democrats are wobbling a little bit because they're shaken. So, what does all this mean?
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: That's right. You think that that really colorful language coming from Congressman Weiner sort of belies the uncertainty and the frustration that Democrats are feeling today, even just feeling like the tide has turned even from a week ago. This was very expected, for Democrats and also for Republicans who as I told you earlier today Don, have a spring in their step. I'm seeing them smile much more here in the halls of Congress and they're really excited by what happened last night.
And, you know, Republicans just generally, all of them, are saying that you just can't argue with the fact that this was a repudiation of how Washington as run by Democrats has been operating. This is what Republicans are saying. Listen to Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, what he said a short time ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. MITCH MCCONNELL (R-KY), MINORITY LEADER: They're tired of bailouts. They're tired of government spending, more than ever, at a time when most people are spending less. And they don't want the government taking over health care. They made that abundantly clear last night in the commonwealth of Massachusetts.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: And Democrats are just very uncertain about what the next steps are going to be in their fight for health care reform. I think the general consensus is that they cannot do what they had planned on doing, this very comprehensive overhaul or at least the chances of being able to do that are very slim. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid spoke on the Senate floor a short time ago. He spoke for about 15 minutes, really only talking about what happened last night in Massachusetts. Toward the end of his comments, he said that he had call Senator-Elect Brown. And here's what else he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: I look forward to visiting with him. I look forward to welcoming him to the Senate and asking that he work with us. It's a -- I -- it's certainly a conversation I look forward to.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Senator Reid spent the vast majority of his comments touting the accomplishments of Democrats over the last year. But, Don, make no mistake about it. This was supposed to be the big accomplishment, a comprehensive overhaul, at least of health insurance, if not health care and it appears at this point very doubtful that Democrats are going to be able to do what they wanted to do. And because of that, you just have a lot of internal chaos as Democrats try to figure out what the next step is.
LEMON: Yes, you know, and they thought, you know, we're almost there, there was some -- there was a lot of optimism about it, this reform going through, at least at some level, even without a public option. So, listen, what options at all do Democrats have since this election last night, yesterday?
KEILAR: Well, technically speaking, one of the ones they might have had would be to rush something through the Senate before Senator- Elect Brown takes his seat, but it's very -- it seems very unlikely that that's going to happen. Senator Jim Webb, a Democrat, says we need to hold off on doing anything, any votes on health care reform until he's seated. So that doesn't really seem to be an avenue.
The other thing would be for the House to take the bill that the Senate has passed and just pass it, maybe separately, put in some changes but there's a lot of liberal Democrats and moderate Democrats who have serious misgivings about that, Don.
And then the other possibility might be to really scale back what they're doing, try to get some Republicans on board. But that's going to take more time. That's going to put them more in jeopardy as it moves closer to an election year and the question is, would Republicans hop on board with them, and if so, Democrats might have to scale back what they want so much. They would give up, of course on universal coverage, but other key priorities as well that they want, Don.
LEMON: Yes, just something else to add to the dissenters there. So, you know, there you go. We shall see. Brianna Keilar, we really appreciate it.
I want to keep talking about news from Capitol Hill, because senior security officials there are getting grilled today. Senators want to know how this man, accused of trying to blow up a Detroit- bound plane on Christmas day, managed to board with explosives stashed in his underwear. Earlier today it was Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano's turn in the hot seat.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: In the past several weeks, no one has been held accountable. Madam secretary?
JANET NAPOLITANO, U.S. SECRETARY OF HOMELAND SECURITY: Well, as you know, senator, we do not prepare the no-fly or terrorist lists and we don't do the screening at international airports. However, I'm the secretary of homeland security and I think I share responsibility for the enterprise that has to happen to prevent this from happening again. (END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: We are monitoring those hearings.
And the so-called White House party crashers, testifying before Congress. But saying very little about how they got in. Tareq and Michele Salahi invoked their Fifth amendment rights against self incrimination today, their first appearance before a congressional panel. Here's part of their testimony right now.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TAREQ SALAHI, ACCUSED WHITE HOUSE CRASHER: We understand their attorneys met with Chairman Thompson's staff as well with Representative King and his staff and provided them with phone records, e-mails and other relevant documentary evidence. We have continued to provide relevant documentary evidence and be as helpful as we can to the important security concerns you are investigating. We also understand the committee received our attorney's letter and our attached declaration, indicating that, based on advice of counsel we intend to assert our constitutional right to remain silent and decline to answer any questions if we were to be subpoenaed to appear before the committee.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
LEMON: Time now for our top stories -- a suspect in the shooting deaths of eight people in Virginia is in police custody now. Christopher Speight (ph) turned himself in this morning. Police say he was a co-owner of a home in Appomattox County where seven people were killed. The other victim was found in the middle of a road. Police are still trying to determine a motive.
President Obama orders a crackdown on Federal contractors who don't pay their taxes. He signed an executive order this morning barring those companies from receiving new government contracts. He says studies show thousands of companies that get government contracts owe more than $5 billion in unpaid taxes.
After being blocked for months by Republicans, President Obama's nominee to head the Transportation Security Administration is giving up his bid for the job. Erroll Southers (ph) blamed his withdrawal on partisan politics.
Another check of our top stories, just 20 minutes away here on CNN.
The weather is still causing some big problems in southern California. We'll get the latest from Chad Myers in the severe weather center just moments away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Southern California really dealing with some major problems, a live shot there. It's morning so we don't know if that's the usual fog or smog whatever you want to call it hanging over there, so we're going to talk to our Chad Myers now. Chad, we know there was a tornado in California. And then what is this, is this usual for morning or is this part of the bad storm rolling through?
(WEATHER REPORT)
LEMON: As aid workers try to help the victims of Haiti's earthquake, we haven't heard a lot from that country's leaders. Our Gary Tuchman has tracked them down.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: Of course, Haiti's earthquake did not discriminate. It destroyed everything from shacks to mansions to some pretty substantial, sturdy property, leaving leaders and followers homeless. So with the international community stepping in, many have asked where is Haiti's government? Our Gary Tuchman went looking for some answers.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The ornate presidential palace, a symbol of the Haitian government for almost 90 years. A rundown police station, the temporary presidential palace, as of this week. We went looking for the Haitian government and found the president in the hallways of the cramped police station. We also found the prime minister.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Two ministers.
TUCHMAN: And the cabinet ministers. There were 18 members of the cabinet before the earthquake. I asked Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive are all the members of your cabinet alive?
JEAN-MAX BELLERIVE, HAITIAN PRIME MINISTER: Yes.
TUCHMAN: They all survived?
BELLERIVE: Yes. All the members of the cabinet (INAUDIBLE) The minister of tourism lost his mother and his father.
TUCHMAN: But the leaders are all here and want Haiti and all the world to know they are on the case. Is the government still in control?
BELLERIVE: Yes, the government is working.
TUCHMAN: President Rene Preval says he went on his motor bike after the quake to round up his ministers.
PRESIDENT RENE PREVAL, HAITI: It's a catastrophe, but we are working with the help of the international community to rebuild the country.
TUCHMAN: The prime minister gave us disturbing news. The first solid casualty numbers.
BELLERIVE: Right now we are -- we think more than 70,000.
TUCHMAN: 70, seven zero?
BELLERIVE: Yes, 70,000 cadavers and I believe that it will be around the numbers that I gave you the first time --
TUCHMAN: Which is what?
BELLERIVE: 100,000.
TUCHMAN: The president, the prime minister and the cabinet will continue to run the government from this police station indefinitely. A more comfortable setting is low on the priority list as the president and his translator made clear.
PREVAL (through translator): On the day of the earthquake, what happened in one minute could be compared to a campaign of bombing during many days in times of war.
TUCHMAN: The Haitian people are looking for leadership. They can find it, for good or for bad, in a worn-down police station.
Gary Tuchman, CNN, Port-au-Prince, Haiti.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: We'll continue to follow the coverage in Haiti. We'll get back to that.
But, first, what does the vote in Massachusetts mean for President Obama's agenda? Some of you may think it's early to ask, but our political pundits say not. I'll get some answers from a couple of political pros, next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
LEMON: A year on the job usually means a review of your performance. Well, today marks exactly one year since President Barack Obama took office. So, how is he doing? According to CNN's poll of polls, an average of the most recent surveys, 51 percent of Americans approve of the way he is handling his job, 42 percent disapprove of his performance.
And part of that disapproval was evident in Massachusetts yesterday after the Democrats lost their super majority in the Senate yesterday. The loss in yesterday's election could send the White House back to the drawing board on health care reform. White House correspondent, Suzanne Malveaux, joins me now from Washington.
Good to see you, Suzanne. How is the White House dealing with this blow? Have they spoken about it?
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: They have spoken about it, Don. I've been speaking with White House aides throughout the morning, senior administration officials. One in particular, David Axelrod, he's the top adviser to the president, I had a chance to talk to him about where the president is in all of this. Clearly, Don, they are scrambling. They are trying to discuss the many options that they feel might still be on the table. They are trying to salvage what is left of the health care reform legislation.
And what Axelrod told me essentially was that he did not necessarily believe this was a referendum on the president's health care plan, but he did say that -- and he acknowledged that he thought it contributed to the frustration that people were feeling in Massachusetts and overall in general. He also said that the president does take some responsibility for the political environment that we find ourselves in. And that they're all going to be sitting down, putting their heads together, trying to come up with a way -- it sounds like a much smaller plan -- to put forward health care reform.
And, Don, he insists that the president has not yet let this go. I want you to take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
DAVID AXELROD, SENIOR WHITE HOUSE ADVISER: He's not going to walk away from that fight for the American people, but they're also, obviously, people are speaking on this issue. There's a frustration with -- with the pace of this. And a congressional debate always distorts the substance of -- of what's in these bills. And that's -- that's hurt this enterprise. So we have to consider how to move forward now.
MALVEAUX: How do you move forward? Does the president consider pushing House Democrats to pass the Senate version? What is the best alternative, the option, here?
AXELROD: I'm not going to discuss tactics here. Obviously, everybody's sifting through this and reading the -- reading these results and interpreting them. While this wasn't, I think, the referendum on health care that some have portrayed it to be, that's obviously an element of people's frustration.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Don, what was notable as well in this interview, I asked him if health care reform was dead. He said it was not dead. But he specifically talked about the president reaching out and taking a step forward, not walking away from reforming the insurance companies. He said the kind of power insurance industry has over people to deny care, to deny access and raise rates, that that specifically the president is focusing on, that he will not walk away from that. That simply suggests, Don, that this is going to be a much more scaled-back version, if you will, if it happens at all -- Don.
LEMON: If it happens at all. And that's what a lot of folks of are saying. White House correspondent Suzanne Malveaux.
Thank you, Suzanne.
So we want to talk more about what the GOP win in Massachusetts means for Democrats, what it means for Republicans and President Barack Obama's agenda. Joining us from Washington, Democratic strategist Julian Epstein.
Good to see you, Julian.
And in New York, GOP strategist and CNN political editor Ed Rollins.
Thank you so much.
ED ROLLINS, GOP STRATEGIST AND CNN POLITICAL EDITOR: My pleasure.
LEMON: OK, so, listen, Mr. Epstein, Democrats are sort of wobbly right now. I said to one of our reporters, the ground that shifted has really left Republicans sort of, you know, standing strong. They've got some spring in their step. But Democrats are wobbling right now. So what's next for them? Are they -- have they been tone deaf and is this a big wake-up call for them?
JULIAN EPSTEIN, DEMOCRATIC STRATEGIST: Well, I think the first thing is to learn the lesson of the election. I think if you talk to a lot of Democrats this morning, they will say that the reason that Coakley lost was because it was an anti-incumbency wave that Brown won. The same wave that Obama won -- ran on. That she ran a bad campaign and Democrats failed to deliver. And I think all of that's true.
But I think if Democrats just stop at that level of analysis, they will be missing something. When you're living in an economy with 10 percent unemployment and very high deficits, you give the Republicans an opportunity to make a big political comeback on the same theme, and Ed will be very familiar with this, that Reagan used in 1980, which is big government is not the answer, big government is the problem.
So I think that Democrats need to go beyond kind of the echo chamber and just saying it's an anti-incumbency wave and realize we're in an environment now that is very, very difficult and they should look at some of the lessons from the Clinton years and from the LBJ years in terms of how to navigate through this next year.
LEMON: I'll ask you the same question, Ed. Go ahead.
ROLLINS: Well, obviously, Julian's a very smart guy and I think he gave a very good analysis. And if the Democrats would listen to that instead of back-stabbing, which is what's going on in D.C. today, they'd be a lot better off.
But what it means for us is, it's one race. We now have won three big races in the last three months, the two governors' races in Virginia and New Jersey. This was a race no one expected us to win. I think it gives us an opportunity to go recruit some good candidates. There are still several Senate races that we think we've got real shots at but we don't have the best candidates there yet and I think that's what this does, is help us raise resources. It basically helps us get ready for this thing. You win these things one at a time and I think we're on a path now that we can do that. LEMON: I want to get -- I want to dig in deeper on this question that I've been asking. Was this, you know, and I'm sure it's a combination, Mr. Rollins. Is this really more about people who have been so passionate about what's going on and did not like what was going on in the last year that they stepped up to help even outside of the state rather than about Martha Coakley?
ROLLINS: Well, I think the bottom line is, you know, there's a lot of people saying she wasn't a good candidate. She won 73 percent of the vote statewide three years ago and beat everybody in her primary.
The bottom line is, there was a very strong anti-Washington sentiment. The president and Axelrod and everybody else may say it has nothing to do with them, but they are the leadership of Washington today. And I think people see a very severe economic situation, a very severe unemployment situation and we've spent a year talking about health care that a majority of Americans don't want anymore.
LEMON: I'm going to come to you. I have one more question for you, Julian, if you'll just let me go on. Let's talk about the president now, because some people are saying, oh it's too early for 2012 to sort of figure out what's going on. But this really resonates when you have, you know, a seat that's been held this long and then it's won by a Republican. So it will have some sort of effect on that, on his agenda especially.
EPSTEIN: There's two lessons that I think you really learn. One is a tactical lesson. And I think -- and I've been saying this for a long time. The lesson from the Clinton years on health care was not to sit back and let the Congress right the bill and then to try to come in at the end of the game and push it over the goalpost. The lesson from the Clinton years on health care was to cut the deal early with the moderates and the committee chairmen and then sell it and then exact political retribution against your adversaries. That was the Bill Clinton style. That was the LBJ style. that has not been the Barack Obama style. I think that needs to change. That's first.
Second is on communications. There's a debate inside the Democratic Party as to whether we move to the center or to the left. The answer is both. What Bill Clinton did, again, is exactly the model. While he was ending welfare as we know it, a conservative/moderate position, he was also fixing Social Security. While he was saving affirmative action, a liberal position, he was also cutting White House budget funding by 25 percent.
LEMON: But, Julian, you know, that's also looking to the past and so, you know, I hate to...
EPSTEIN: But I think it's the model -- but the point, Don, is, I think it's the model for the future.
LEMON: There is a precedent that's already set (INAUDIBLE)...
EPSTEIN: Democrats can't just govern from Democrats cannot just govern from the left. We need to simultaneously be able to govern from the center, to work with the business community, and to be able to get to moderates the idea that we understand. We don't want any more government than we absolutely need.
LEMON: OK. Point well taken on that. Point well made.
So this is the last question and I'm going to ask Ed Rollins. So, you know, and I don't think it's premature, when you look at the way Scott Brown handled himself in his first national press conference, already asked a question about will he run for president. And it's a similar story to President Obama's story when he was a senator, first term senator. Everyone loved him in the beginning, and then all of a sudden he runs for president. GOP's new star and what does this mean for him possibly beyond this?
ROLLINS: Pre-elections are always about the incumbent. This president still has some popularity, although he has the highest disapproval numbers of any president at this point in his presidency. The bottom line is, if he has a bad midterm, he can't get an agenda, that the public doesn't want his agenda, then he basically runs a very vulnerable incumbent. Some Republican will come forth and give him all he wants (INAUDIBLE)...
EPSTEIN: There is one final thought here, Don.
LEMON: OK. Real quickly because I've got to run.
EPSTEIN: Which is, this could be a blessing in disguise. When Clinton lost the House in '94, it gave him the political cover to work with Republicans and to govern from the center. And this gives Obama, I think, that political cover to begin working with the moderates more.
LEMON: Julian Epstein, Ed Rollins, thank you both.
EPSTEIN: Thank you.
ROLLINS: My pleasure. Thank you.
LEMON: We want to check our top stories right now.
Federal contractors who hold out on Uncle Sam will find it tougher to score government contracts. President Obama has ordered a crackdown on companies that don't pay taxes or file false tax returns. He signed the executive order this morning.
"The New York Times" says it will soon start charging readers to view articles online. Starting next year, you'll be able to access a set of numbers -- a set number of articles, I should say, for free. After you hit your quota, you'll have to pay up. Present subscribers will continue to get free access.
Parents of young children, listen up. Graco is recalling about 1.5 million strollers after reports of fingertip amputations. Several children were apparently hurt after sticking their hands in a hinge of the stroller. For more information, check out the Consumer Product Safety Commission's website. New numbers out on the housing market are having an impact on Wall Street. We'll find out why.
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LEMON: Want to check now what's going on, on Wall Street. Let's take a look at the Dow. The Dow is down. The Dow is down some -- hang on, I clicked off of it right here. I think it's 100 and some points. There we go right there. The Dow down 185. I'm showing 183 points here. The Nasdaq down 43.14. We'll get a final check of it -- or a bigger check of on it from Susan Lisovicz in just a little bit. But again, the Dow down 183 points. The Nasdaq down 43.24.
You know, we have seen a lot of the impact of Haiti's earthquake in downtown Port-au-Prince. What's it like when you get away from the center of town? We're going to show you.
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LEMON: We told you what was happening on Wall Street just a minute ago. Dow and Nasdaq both down. It's been a crazy few days on Wall Street. And for the third straight trading day, the Dow is posting a triple digit move.
So, unfortunately, today it's a downside, right? Susan Lisovicz following the action from the New York Stock Exchange.
Susan, is there something that's maybe frightening investors? What's going on here?
SUSAN LISOVICZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We're getting a lot of information. You know, we kind of eased into the new year. We were in a news vacuum. And now we're getting a lot of information. And the market's reacting. And that's where you have volatility, Don.
Overnight, stock futures were under pressure because of news from China. When the opening bell sounded here, the stock market fell even further because of news from here.
The news from China is, quite simply, that it's going to just simply rein in its lending. Well, that sounds prudent. That sounds like something sensible. Well, it could affect the pace of growth. And China is an economic powerhouse. So that's one thing affecting sentiment.
The things here affecting sentiment is banks. We're getting results, quarterly results, from a lot of big banks and they're still fragile. Bank of America setting aside $10 billion for bad loans. Wells Fargo setting aside $6 billion. Sure, they're a whole lot better than they were a year ago, but when you have a 10 percent unemployment rate, a lot of people cannot pay their bills. The loans go bad. And so that underscores the need for setting aside bigger loan-loss reserves.
Finally, we got some news from the housing market, Don. Builders broke ground on 550,000 new homes last year. Sounds like a lot. It's down 40 percent from 2008. And so you're seeing triple-digit declines right now. The worst sell-off of the year.
Don.
LEMON: So those are the housing numbers, right? The housing numbers. Because, you know, people, they're investments. And if you're young enough, you say, OK, my 401(k) will come back, my investments will pay off.
LISOVICZ: Yes.
LEMON: But what about -- people are really concern about the housing numbers and whether or not they're going to come back soon, if at all?
LISOVICZ: Well, you know, I mean, again, when you have a 10 percent unemployment rate, you know, you're going to see problems with foreclosures, you're going to have problems with people making their mortgage payments. We did get that tax credit extended. We expect to see a surge in the spring when that -- when that is set to expire. The winter is the slowest period, let's face it, Don.
But, you know, we did get a bright spot in the -- in the housing numbers today. Housing starts declined, but building permits, which this is a good gauge of future activity, jumped 11 percent in December. And that's the highest level since '08. So some signs of light.
LEMON: We'll take that little bit of good news, right?
LISOVICZ: Yes.
LEMON: Yes, take what we can.
Thank you, Susan Lisovicz.
LISOVICZ: You're welcome.
LEMON: Big banks are pushing back on one of President Obama's big plans.
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LEMON: Just days after President Obama called for a new tax on big banks, Wall Street is considering a legal challenge now. Really, a legal challenge? CNNMoney.com's Poppy Harlow has "The Breakdown" from New York.
Hello, Poppy.
So we're talking about some big money at stake here, right?
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Yes. Hi, Don.
I mean, that's exactly right. This is a top lobbying group for the banking industry. And what they've done is they've just hired a supreme court lawyer, so they're obviously looking into a legal challenge here. And the likely argument that you're going to hear is that, hey, putting a tax on big banks just is not constitutional because you're singling out a single industry. So the argument makes sense. We'll see if it can hold up in court if it goes that far.
But this all comes on the heels of the proposal last week from President Obama for that Financial Crisis Responsibility Fee put on those that he deemed to be the main contributors to the crisis. The big banks. And the reasoning behind that, he said, was to ensure that taxpayers don't lose a penny from the bailout.
What would this be? Well, it would be assessed on about 50 banks and it would raise supposedly about $90 billion over the next 10 years. So sort of fill the gap there for the bailout losses. Now, the idea is to include this in the 2011 budget.
So let's be clear, Don, this is a proposal at this point. Congress still has to pass it. But interesting that the banks are gearing up for what could be a very big legal battle here. It's unclear whether they're really going to move ahead, but the lobbying group that hired this supreme court lawyer says, although it's premature to speculate, this tax they say is punitive and also counterproductive, Don. So something certainly to watch.
LEMON: Well, Poppy, you know, TARP money went to bailed-out corporations other than just banks.
HARLOW: Right.
LEMON: So the automakers -- the automakers, right, for example.
HARLOW: Right.
LEMON: So what's the reaction what's it like, you know, are banks just responding to this? Are they the only ones being asked to pay this tax?
HARLOW: They are the only ones. And, honestly, the ones that I've talked to, the bankers I talked to, are livid. I talked to one of the men at the helm of one of these big U.S. banks. I talked to him on the phone. And said, listen, this was not part of the original TARP deal. This is purely a political move. It's being put on the back of bankers because everyone hates the bankers right now. Those are his words. And he said that really this tax burden should be more widely shared.
And what's interesting is that it would affect firms that have already paid back TARP money with interest. So that raises a lot of questions. But the president is saying, hey, if these companies are in good enough shape to pay back taxpayers -- pay their employees, rather, what are expected to be massive bonuses, then they can pay back taxpayers. So the president has a point there.
But I think this is really interesting. What happened this morning, Don, is that Warren Buffett came out this morning on CNBC and he, who was a big supporter of the president, said he doesn't understand this tax, especially on banks that didn't want to take that TARP money in the first place. And he did make a point that the bailout was about saving the broad American economy, not just the banks. So it's not clear to him why the banks are being singled out.
And as you've said, you've pointed out the automakers. Chrysler and GM received billions in TARP money. And, Don, this tax would not apply to them.
So let us know what you think. Log on to twitter.com/CNNMoney. Interesting story to be following -- Don.
LEMON: Oh, it is. It is. And I will be on Twitter looking for it.
Thank you so much. We appreciate it, Poppy.
HARLOW: You got it.
LEMON: You know, we've seen a lot of impact of Haiti's earthquake in downtown Port-au-Prince. But what is it like when you get away from the center of town. We're going to show you.
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LEMON: You know, it's hard to believe we haven't seen the worst of the destruction in Haiti, but there are still entire neighborhoods obliterated in remote corners of Port-au-Prince and survivors in desperate need of help. Our Jason Carroll made a trip to one of them. Here's what he saw.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON CARROLL, CNN CORRESPONDENT, (voice over): We found Jude Petehom (ph) and his four-year-old sister, Saryah (ph), in one of Port-au-Prince's poorest and most remote neighborhoods, Liva du Berdon (ph).
CARROLL (on camera): What happened to her arm here? Did she break her arm?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
CARROLL: Yes, she broke her arm.
CARROLL (voice-over): After days of waiting, Petehom feared help was not coming for his sister because he knows not many would know how to find where they live.
CARROLL (on camera): And you live way up there?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
CARROLL: And so it took you one hour to walk down here.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
CARROLL: To get help for your little sister. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
CARROLL (voice-over): Some 6,000 people live in Liva du Berdon and help for them still has not arrived. And there are at least 30 other hillside communities just like it around Port-au-Prince, where the worry is people there, too, are still waiting.
CARROLL (on camera): These steep, narrow pathways are the only way in and out of these kinds of communities here. The homes are built right on top of each other. There are no addresses, so you can imagine it's very difficult to keep track of who survived and who perished in the earthquake.
CARROLL (voice-over): The path leading in is at times blocked with debris. A maze of homes on either side, most destroyed, or badly damaged. Along the way, Thomas Brute (ph) is saying, with the assistance of our translator, they need help removing bodies.
THOMAS BRUTE (through translator): We would like to take them out. One house has three. Another one has nine.
CARROLL: He leads us to one home where the smell was nearly unbearable.
CARROLL (on camera): Does anyone know who the deceased are in here?
CARROLL (voice-over): They tell me a mother and son are buried in the rubble.
The area section chief, similar to a city councilman, uses a bullhorn to get information out. He knows there's one thing standing in the way of getting help.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Accessibility.
CARROLL (on camera): Accessibility?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
CARROLL: They can't get down here?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They can't get down here, yes.
CARROLL: Yes.
CARROLL (voice-over): Four-year-old Saryah is one of the lucky ones. She has an older brother strong enough to get her help. The worry is for the others still suffering in the city's hillsides.
CARROLL (on camera): These hillside communities are so densely populated and so confusing once you're in them, even locals tell us it's tough to navigate through them. So they realize it could take a while before help finally arrives.
Jason Carroll, CNN, Port-au-Prince, Haiti. (END VIDEOTAPE)
LEMON: All right, Jason, thank you.
I'm Don Lemon. Thanks for watching. CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Ali Velshi.
