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Megachurch Pastor Faces Sex Claims; Three Women Accuse DA of Sexting; Wisconsin District Attorney Under Fire For Alleged "Sexting" Incidents; White House Pushes Back Against New Book Claiming Deep Divisions Within Administration Over Afghan War; Banking Industry in Trouble Over Foreclosures Without Fact Check; Economic "Aftershock"; $30 Million Seized from Vatican Bank
Aired September 22, 2010 - 09:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR: That's going to do it for us. Kyra Phillips is in the "CNN NEWSROOM" and you give me heck about throwing dental floss in the toilet.
(LAUGHTER)
KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Man, those are big pipes.
ROBERTS: No more.
(CROSSTALK)
PHILLIPS: Those are some really big pipes.
CHETRY: That's what comes up out of the toilet.
(LAUGHTER)
PHILLIPS: So glad I live in Atlanta, Georgia.
ROBERTS: See what they can see? This is what happens in New York City. I told you.
PHILLIPS: Well, you know what happens? You throw this floss in there and then it grows and it turned into a big snake. Hello. Can't you figure that out?
CHETRY: See?
PHILLIPS: OK. Have a great day, guys.
ROBERTS: I told her there are alligators in the New York City sewer system and they get there through the toilet.
All right, Kyra, take it away.
PHILLIPS: All right. Good morning, everybody. Boy, we've got a lot of ground to cover today.
Imagine a guy sends you a text inviting you to an autopsy. All right. That's creepy enough but that text allegedly from a district attorney to a crime victim was just the tip of the iceberg. We've got the governor of Wisconsin live.
Another scandal for the Vatican and it has nothing to do with sex but everything to do with money.
And maybe your house wouldn't have gone into foreclosure if the lender had actually checked the paper work first.
I'm Kyra Phillips and you're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.
Our top story this morning, Bishop Eddie Long. He leads the largest -- one of the largest churches in the country but today he's accused of betraying the trust of those who follow him.
Two men filed lawsuits claiming that he coerced them into sexual relationships when they were teenagers.
Long is a nationally known minister and the claims are shocking in contrast to his public image. He passionately crusade against homosexuality. Long's success as a pastor is undeniable. Two decades after taking over a small church, his followers now number 25,000.
A spokesperson for Eddie Long denies the allegations but the scandal is sending shock waves through the empire.
CNN's Ed Lavandera is here with a closer look.
I think that shocked not only the empire but so many people of faith.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, no. The reach of Eddie Long for those of you who don't really know much about him, I mean he's -- you can't deny it. He's an internationally renowned minister. He sells books. An author of 10 books.
He's got a spiritual empire that he's developed so we're talking about a very influential person. And to get you a sense, we've been hearing this morning from a spokesperson for Eddie Long who has some harsh words to say about the two men who are accusing him of sexual abuse.
Listen to what he told CNN just a little while ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ART FRANKLIN, SPOKESMAN, BISHOP LONG: This is actually, John, a case of retaliation and a shakedown for money by men with some serious credibility issues who are trying to mount their own defense.
This is something that went from 48 hours from contact with the attorney claiming outrageous demands to the dog and pony show that we're seeing it that began yesterday.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
LAVANDERA: All right. So we're already hearing the words of shakedown and retaliation to give you a sense of just how intense this battle is going to be. So let's listen to a little bit more of the background of what these two men are accusing Bishop Eddie Long of. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BISHOP EDDIE LONG, NEW BIRTH MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH: Angels were flying around my bed. All night. All day.
LAVANDERA (voice-over): Bishop Eddie Long's fiery sermons have made him a revered evangelical pastor. He's the bishop of the New Birth Missionary Baptist mega church near Atlanta Georgia.
JONATHAN WALTON, HARVARD DIVINITY SCHOOL: Eddie Long offers himself up as this kind of man's man. He's a quintessential man. He is a successful businessman. He's a successful preacher. He has a beautiful family.
He's a successful family man. He drives a fancy car. He wears custom-tailored clothes. So in some ways some would argue that he is the man that all women want and that all men are supposed to aspire to be.
LAVANDERA: But in separate lawsuits, two young men -- former church members -- say Bishop Long used his spiritual authority to coerce and manipulate them into destructive sexual relationships.
Twenty-year-old Maurice Robinson and 21-year-old Anthony Flagg say they met Eddie Long through the bishop's Longfellow Youth Academy, a ministry aimed at nurturing boy into strong young men.
B.J. BERNSTEIN, ATTORNEY FOR PLAINTIFFS: He would use biblical stories to talk about how important it was to follow your leader and your master. And let him know that the acts that he was engaged in were not necessarily meaning that he was a homosexual.
LAVANDERA: Bishop Long's spokesman tells CNN he adamantly denies the allegations. The young men alleged Long made them his spiritual sons in a private ceremony called a covenant.
BERNSTEIN: Within that covenant, it was essentially a marriage ceremony where there was candles, exchange of jewelry. And biblical quotes given in order for Anthony to know and for the bishop to tell him, I will always have your back and you will always have mine.
LONG: In the name of Jesus.
LAVANDERA: Bishop Eddie Long built a spiritual empire by sheer force of personality. New Birth Church had 300 members some 20 years ago. Today it has more than 25,000 members.
When Coretta Scott King, the wife of the Reverend Martin Luther King, died, her funeral was held in his church. As Bishop Long's prestige has grown, so has his conservative voice in social politics. He once led an anti-gay marriage march through Atlanta.
LONG: We're not marching against folk. We are marching for folk. And if they don't understand it now they'll understand it better as the old preacher says by and by. LAVANDERA: Bishop Eddie Long often refers to himself as God's scarred leader. Those who followed his career say Bishop Long has never shied away from talking about his own personal struggles and faults. That's made him even bigger than life to his spiritual flock.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
LAVANDERA: And there's one other intriguing twist to all that's going on. Back this summer, back in June, two men were arrested for breaking into Bishop Eddie Long's office at the New Birth Church. They stole, according to the police report that we've seen, $100,000 in jewelry and an iPad.
Maurice Robinson was arrested in that case. He's one of the men accusing Bishop Eddie Long of these -- in these lawsuits. So that's why you hear the attorneys there talking about their credibility issues, that a retaliation, a shakedown and essentially they were going after money. And essentially that's what they are -- seem to be suggesting that they're doing now with the lawsuits.
In the lawsuit, the attorneys for Maurice Robinson say that this was -- that he had just been finding out that other men were involved with Eddie Long and that this was his way of lashing out at the bishop trying to take away what he thought was most important to the bishop was material possessions.
So that's kind of an intriguing twist to all -- you know, where all this plays out at this point. But it's hard to say. It's just what we know at this point.
PHILLIPS: Well, that kind of stands out, too. $100,000 worth of jewelry in the church? I mean that's a little odd, as well.
LAVANDERA: In his office.
PHILLIPS: Yes. Strange. All right, well, we're going to be talking a lot more about this. It's pretty, pretty shocking to a number of people, internationally.
LAVANDERA: No question. No question.
PHILLIPS: Ed, thanks so much.
LAVANDERA: You got it.
PHILLIPS: We're actually going to -- at the bottom of the hour we're going to hear from the attorney representing the two accusers.
B.J. Bernstein is pulling no punches in her lawsuits against the bishop. She's going to join us here live at 9:30.
The owner of an Iowa egg farm plans to apologize today to the victims of a salmonella outbreak that sickened 1600 people.
Jack DeCoster and his son Peter will appear at a House panel hearing on food safety at noon Eastern. "The Des Moines Register" has obtained a copy of their testimony.
Peter DeCoster says, "That while we always believed we were doing the right thing it's now very clear that we must do more."
Jack DeCoster says that he prays several times each day for the victims of that outbreak.
The owner of Hillsdale Farm which also recalled eggs will testify today, too.
Congressional repeal of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy is dead. At least for now. Democrats couldn't break a Republican-led filibuster against the defense spending bill that included the repeal.
The bill also included the Dream Act that would give immigrants brought to the U.S. as children permanent residency if they spend time in college or the military.
Republican Senator John McCain said tacking on the immigration amendment to a defense spending bill was a cynical act for political reasons.
And Senate candidate and Tea Party star Christine O'Donnell is speaking out after side stepping questions about bills that she paid with campaign cash. She sat down with Sean Hannity of FOX News.
Although she could head to Washington and make decisions that affect all of us, she says this was her last national TV interview. She also tried to clear the air about the days that she dabbled in witchcraft.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SEAN HANNITY, FOX NEWS HOST: Bill Maher. A friend of yours, obviously. You did a show a lot.
CHRISTINE O'DONNELL (R), DELAWARE SENATE CANDIDATE: Yes. Yes.
HANNITY: Apparently.
O'DONNELL: Unfortunately.
HANNITY: All right. He comes up with this tape. Was it 1999? You made an appearance.
O'DONNELL: Yes.
HANNITY: Talking, I guess, about a boyfriend when you were a teenager?
O'DONNELL: Right, right, right.
HANNITY: OK. Saying that you had dabbled into witchcraft. Why don't you explain for people that maybe -- what was that about?
O'DONNELL: Well, teenage rebellion. You know? Some people dabble in drugs to rebel. That's how I rebelled. HANNITY: All the talk about you got to do this national show, that national show.
O'DONNELL: No. It doesn't --
HANNITY: Is that off the table for you?
O'DONNELL: It's off the table because that's not going to help me get votes. I instead want to go to as many town hall forums, as many candidate forums, as many church picnics that I can fit into my schedule so that I can meet the voters.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Well, we've been trying to get answers from Christine O'Donnell every chance we can but so far she hasn't said much to us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miss O'Donnell, I'm asking that one question you promised you'd answer.
O'DONNELL: I did answer it.
TUCHMAN: No. About the rentals last year. Why do you pay in rent with campaign money?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. Sorry. Tonight. Not happening.
TUCHMAN: Well, that was the one question I had.
O'DONNELL: I answered it.
TUCHMAN: No, you didn't answer it.
BRIAN TOOD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Miss O'Donnell, would you be able to talk about the specific question on the $20,000?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Congratulations.
O'DONNELL: No truth to it. I'll release a statement. I'll release a statement. No truth to it, though, I assure you, Brian.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: We also heard from Christine O'Donnell's Democratic challenger Chris Coons. Last night on "JOHN KING, USA" he weighed in on whether witchcraft is relevant in the race.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRIS COONS (D), DELAWARE SENATE CANDIDATE: I really don't think so. I think it's up to the voters from Delaware to decide when they go into the booth six weeks from now which of the many things they've heard about my opponent and about me are relevant when they make a decision. This really is job interview and what I have heard over the last nine months is that what folks want to know is what experience do you have? What ideas do you have to get us back on track and to get this economy fixed?
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Coons has also been forced to answer questions about his past. He had to come out and deny allegations of conservative bloggers and radio hosts that he's a bearded Marxist based on an article that he wrote in a student paper back in 1985.
Now you can watch Christine O'Donnell and Chris Coons as they face off in a 90-minute debate on October 13th.
Our own Wolf Blitzer will actually help host that event. Don't miss it. That's Wednesday, October 13th right here on CNN.
Another member of President Obama's economic team is leaving. Top economic adviser Larry Summers will step down at the end of the year and return to teach at Harvard. White House officials say that Summers stayed a year longer than originally planned.
Summers becomes the third economic team member to leave since July.
A CNN Opinion Research poll shows Americans are still hurting. Eight in 10 say economic conditions are poor and nearly 6 in 10 Americans disapprove of the way President Obama is handling the economy.
A district attorney in Wisconsin won't quit. After a string of women have been coming forward saying he sent them sleazy text messages. One of them to an abuse victim. Another, just looking for legal help. Wisconsin's governor joins us live.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Three women now say that their cell phones have buzzed with dirty messages from the Wisconsin district attorney, Ken Kratz, a man who admits to texting an abuse victim. But he's still refusing to step down.
The newest woman to step forward now is a law student.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARIA RUSKIEWICZ, LAW STUDENT: Not only is he picking on women, but he's picking on women in vulnerable positions such as domestic abuse or people coming out from the criminal system trying to break that cycle and become better who have to reach out for his support.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: But it was his first accuser that really grabbed our attention. A domestic abuse victim. Kratz handling the choking case against her ex-boyfriend when he called the woman a, quote, "young, hot nymph" among other things. The DA admits to texting her more than 30 times in three days.
Now, the second woman claims Kratz invited her to an autopsy provided she wear heels and a skirt. The DA denies that. And you just heard from the third woman, who says she was looking for help to pardon an old drug charge. She says Kratz texted her about how she would please him between the sheets. No comment from the DA on that one. But Kratz did apologize to the first woman earlier this week.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEN KRATZ, CALUMET COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: My behavior was inappropriate. I'm embarrassed and ashamed for the choices that I made and the fault was mine alone. After considering my selfishness and my arrogance in contacting this young woman, I immediately engaged in the individual psychotherapy to address these issues.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Now, Wisconsin governor Jim Doyle wants to begin the process to get Calumet County DA Ken Kratz fired. The governor joins me live from Madison. Governor, Kratz has even come forward and said he refuses to resign, so what's it going to take on your behalf to handle this?
GOVERNOR JIM DOYLE (D), WISCONSIN: There is a process in Wisconsin by which the governor can remove a district attorney for misconduct in office or malfeasance.
Step one is a verified complaint from a taxpayer in Calumet County, and I know that we will have that today. Step two is, I appoint a commissioner to look into those allegations and to give the district attorney a chance to tell his side of the story. And step three is, I make a decision on whether this conduct warrants his removal from office.
I'm a former district attorney myself. I'm the three-term attorney general of Wisconsin. I've spent a lot of my career working with domestic violence victims and, so, obviously, what has happened here is extremely shocking and troubling to me.
I want to make sure that any woman, any victim of a crime, particularly a sensitive crime, a domestic violence or sexual assault or child abuse, can come into a police department or a prosecutor's office in Wisconsin and be treated with the respect and dignity to which that victim is entitled.
And so, obviously, I'm very concerned and I have said that immediately upon the receipt of that verified complaint which, again, I'm quite confident will come in today, that we will -- I will move for his -- start the proceedings that move towards his removal, and hope that this can be done in 30 days or so.
PHILLIPS: And Governor -- next 30 days, all right. And as you mentioned, you were also a DA, also state attorney general. Why do you think Kratz thought he could get away with this? DOYLE: You know, I -- you'd have to open up his mind and look in to see it. He acknowledges those texts. And anybody who reads them, if you saw his original statements on those texts were that they weren't sexual in nature, and while maybe inappropriate they weren't beyond -- over any line. And I think anybody reading them would see that.
And then the allegations that have come out since, including the law student, who -- I ought to mention, what really troubles me about this is this is the governor's pardon power. She was seeking a pardon for a relatively minor drug offense. I weigh very heavily what a district attorney's recommendation is in deciding to give a pardon. So a district attorney has a great deal to say.
Here's a young woman, going to law school, trying to get ahead, and really has the district attorney's approval or disapproval of that application would have a lot to say about whether or not a pardon would be granted.
I've granted the young woman a pardon. I didn't know any of these facts until just yesterday. But again, that's one that strikes at the very heart of the governor's powers in the state of Wisconsin.
PHILLIPS: Do you think that there are more victims of this DA out there? Do you think you -- have you gotten any more phone calls or letters or testimony from other women?
DOYLE: We've had a number of other contacts. And of course, we are following up on all of those. I noticed that today there's a media report that the attorney for the first woman that this was reported on has -- was contacted by another domestic abuse victim who was making a similar allegation. Of course, we are very interested to see that.
The other concern that I have here is, I didn't learn about this, including -- and most of all of Wisconsin didn't learn about this until Wednesday of last week when it was broke in the media. This all happened last October. And it concerns me a great deal about why this happened last October and --
PHILLIPS: Nobody told you about it.
DOYLE: From then on, he continued to operate as a district attorney.
PHILLIPS: Yes. It's appalling. Absolutely appalling. Governor, I'm glad you're stepping forward and you're doing something to get this guy ousted. Because if, indeed, there are more victims out there, and everything that has happened so far is 100 percent true, he does not deserve, in any way, shape, or form, to be in the position that he's in. Governor Jim Doyle, really appreciate your time today.
DOYLE: Thank you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: You bet. Bob Woodward's new book talks about the war in the White House over the war in Afghanistan. We've got excerpts and administration reaction.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: The war inside the White House over the war in Afghanistan. It's all spelled out in a new book by Bob Woodward called "Obama's Wars." Excerpts released overnight describe deep divisions within the administration, close aide Richard Holbrooke reportedly telling the president his plans for ending the Afghan war can't work. Ed Henry live at the White House this morning with more. Ed, we understand the administration is responding to the book now.
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Yes, they are pushing back, Kyra. I've got a quote from a senior administration official who's basically saying and suggesting that there's not a lot new here, and it's being blown out of proportion, the senior administration official telling me, quote, "The president comes across in the review and throughout the decision-making process as a commander-in-chief who is analytical, strategic, and decisive, with a broad view of history, national security, and his role."
This administration official adding that the debates in the book are well-known. We've known for months now that there was deep division within the administration, and this official goes on to say that the book also, when you look at it in the full context, shows the president focusing this review of Afghan policy late last year on central questions, like how do you cripple al Qaeda? That the president also is shown in the book to be going into great depth, going through the intelligence reports from the battlefield himself to make sure they get the policy right.
Now, that may all be true in the full context, but the idea that there's nothing new here seems like a bit of a stretch. Because when you go through what you mentioned, the allegation that Richard Holbrooke told the president that this policy won't work. He's a senior adviser on Afghan-Pakistan policy. That's significant if true.
Also, the fact that there's a quote attributed to the president that he said in private that he wanted an exit strategy out of Afghanistan and said, quote, "I can't lose the whole Democratic party." A suggestion, at least, in this book, a claim that the president was basing the idea of beginning the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in the summer of 2011 on the notion that liberals in the Democratic party were pressuring him to have some sort of exit strategy.
So this is, bottom line, something the White House would prefer not to be talking about right now. The president has a big event later this afternoon on health care reform. The beginning of the implementation of the reforms he put into place six months ago today. They want to be talking about economy, jobs about six weeks before the midterms. Division within this White House over Afghan policy is not exactly what they want to be talking about, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: The book wasn't a big surprise, but the timing couldn't have been worse.
HENRY: Yes. Because, you know, look. They've known for months that Bob Woodward was writing this book. He's got a strong track record of a couple dozen books that have mostly been considered accurate. So it's not like this is made up out of whole cloth or some wild allegations. It's someone who's been meticulous.
And then, this White House worked with him. The president interviewed with him, other senior officials, they cooperated, at least with parts of this book. But you're right in terms of the timing. The president's going to New York City later today for the UN General Assembly. He wanted to talk about Israeli-Palestinian peace, Iran, other big subjects. He doesn't want to talk about Afghanistan right now, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Ed Henry from the live -- or from the White House. Ed, thanks.
HENRY: Thank you.
PHILLIPS: The pastor of a megachurch faces blistering allegations of sexual misconduct, and they come from two men who say Bishop Eddie Long betrayed their trust. Their attorney up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, the banking industry is in hot water again. Some lenders actually pushed through the paperwork on foreclosures, but did they ever check the facts to see if the homeowners were really in default? Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange. So, Alison, what happened?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it seems that bank employees, Kyra, signed these foreclosure papers without checking the facts first. Some didn't even verify the information in those documents. And the documents I'm talking about, they contain information on the mortgage, how much is owed, who owns it, that kind of thing.
Also, the bank is supposed to sign foreclosure papers in front of a notary, and in some cases, the notary wasn't even around.
Allied Bank, which used to be known as GMAC admits that this happened, and there are also reports, Kyra, that a single JP Morgan Chase employee did the same thing. We've reached out to JP Morgan. No comment yet from them -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: So, how does something like this even happen? I mean, where's the oversight or the court supervision?
KOSIK: Of course, that's a really good question and the fact is that some states really don't require foreclosures to go to court. The bank really just has to sign off on the papers, and it really speeds things along. Allied Bank is saying that the internal process has been modified to stop this from happening again, is also suspended evictions and repossessions on homes that are still in the process of foreclosure and may have been affected.
Stocks right now, they've opened lower. Tech shares are under pressure after Adobe systems issued a cautious forecast. The Dow Industrial is down about 8. The NASDAQ is off about 8 as well. We'll keep an eye on all the numbers and the story about the foreclosures. Kyra, back to you.
PHILLIPS: All right. Alison, thanks.
The recession has been over for more than a year. We just learned that this week according to the panel that charts our financial dips and perks, but let's be honest here. If you've lost your house, lost your job or lost your savings, that declaration probably isn't very comforting. We want the know what comes next. That brings us to this morning's "AM Extra."
John Roberts joined me live from New York. You actually talked with Robert Reich. He always got something interesting to say. He was the labor secretary under Bill Clinton as we know. Nobody has a crystal ball, but he did have his own ideas on how to move forward some would say very controversial.
JOHN ROBERTS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Always something interesting to say, dramatic and as you say, controversial. He got a new book out called "Aftershock." He talks about the current state of the economy and what needs to be done to fix it. He's predicting that this economic recovery if you want to call it that wherein is going to be very anemic because there is a fundamental imbalance in the economy.
According to Reich, too much money that's in the system is going to too few people at the very top of the food chain. And he wants to completely restructure the taxation system so that people who made the least amount of money would actually get a supplement to their income, income earners who are in the upper tax bracket about $410,000 would have their marginal tax rate increased at the federal level to 55 percent.
It's currently 36 percent. There is an argument being made by many economists that you cannot close the budget gap just off the backs of the rich. That even if you were to tax them at a much higher rate, they have ways of taking less income, deferring income, in some cases. So that the tax revenue just wouldn't be there anyways. Here's what Reich said in response to that question.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROBERT REICH, AUTHOR, "AFTERSHOCK": The rich can defer taxes and that's part of the problem. Last year, the 25 top hedge fund managers in this country earned on average $1 billion each. And a lot of them paid about 17 percent in taxes. I mean, they're paying at a tax rate because of, you know, deferrals and because of capital gains loopholes.
They're paying tax rate that somebody earning $30,000 a year and goes to the current debate of whether you extend the Bush tax cuts to the top or not or to, you know, the 98 percent. I would say, yes, extend them to 98 percent of Americans, but people at the top do not spend nearly the same percentage of their income as average working people. And therefore, if you give them a big tax break, they're not going to turn around and spend it.
They're not going to create jobs. And also, by giving them a big tax break, and extending the Bush tax cut for them for another year or two, you are giving them a huge winfall. One year for the top 2 percent means $36 billion. And that blows a hole in the budget.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Is this the income redistribution?
ROBERTS: Well, the principle is, according to Robert Reich, that the rich have so much money it's impossible for them to spend it all. Therefore, it's not making into a back into the economy. So, his solution is, you tax the rich at a much higher level and we begin with, you know, at $160,000 a year, you pay 40 percent in taxes. Up to that maximum marginal rate of 55 percent and you take that money and you give it to people in the lower income scales, so that they have more disposable income in which to put back into the economy.
He uses the words distribution throughout the book, but this morning when Kiran asked him about it, he said, no, no it's not redistribution, but you make up your own mind as to exactly what this is. He talks about distribution, wants to take money from the rich, and give it to lower income people. In many people's books, that is redistribution, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: And he also says this is not controversial. This is going to create a lot of talk.
ROBERTS: No.
PHILLIPS: That's for sure. This book's going to sell. That's definitely the case. Thanks, John.
ROBERTS: And that's the goal.
PHILLIPS: Yes.
ROBERTS: All right.
Well, this next story is about the leader of one of the largest churches in the country. This morning, Bishop Eddie Long is accused of betraying the trust of those who follow him. Two men have filed lawsuits claiming that he coerced them into sexual relationships when they were teenagers. Long is a nationally known minister and the claims are in shocking contrast to his public image. He passionately crusade against homosexuality.
Long's success as a pastor is undeniable. Two decades after taking over a small church, his followers now number 25,000. A spokesperson for Eddie Long denies these allegations. He actually spoke to our John Roberts last hour on "American Morning." (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
VOICE OF ART FRANKLIN, SPOKESMAN FOR BISHOP EDDIE LONG: This is actually a case of retaliation and a shakedown for money by men with some serious credibility issues who are trying to mount their own defense. This is something that went from 48 hours contact with the attorney claiming outrageous demands to this dog and pony show that we're seeing that began yesterday.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: The attorney filing those lawsuits is also pulling no punches. B.J. Bernstein represents the two men who accused Long of a sexual conduct. She joins us live here in studio.
So, go ahead and react to what Franklin said because we haven't had a chance to talk to him. He says this is a shakedown for money. It is a civil suit. It's about retaliation, and they're appalled at what's happening.
B.J. BERNSTEIN, PLAINTIFF'S ATTORNEY: Absolutely not. I mean, first of all, the issue here is it had to be brought out to the public so that this stops. And these two young men, it is incredibly difficult for young men to claim that they have had any sort of contact with another man, much less their pastor. This is bringing them scorn and ridicule as you're already hearing from the church.
PHILLIPS: Why now? Why are they coming out now?
BERNSTEIN: Yes, it's a number of things. First of all, as I said, one of these young men, and we put it in the lawsuit, we're not hiding this. It's in the lawsuit. He broke into the church because if you ask any expert who deals with especially young people who've been exploited and sexually abused, there is incredible anger and it says in the lawsuit.
In May of this year, his best friend died. He had gone to the bishop for counseling and solace because, again, he had known him since he was 14 years old and the bishop then made a move on him. And that created a frenzy inside of him. It had awoken him to how far this man didn't care about him and just was using him.
PHILLIPS: And that's what Art Franklin is saying is that he broke in to the church, that he's going to discredit Maurice Robinson and also Anthony Flag. Anthony Flag was not involved in this break- in, that this is all about retaliation because they attempted to break in and steal jewelry.
BERNSTEIN: Right. And this is the thing, he broke in to the place in the church where some of these sexual acts occurred. He got the jewelry which is black diamonds, jewelry that's estimated by the church at over $100,000. And because of the idea that that jewelry meant more to that bishop, a man who drives a Bentley, has private jets, flies all over the world, flew these kids, this one young man, Maurice Robinson, flew him to New Zealand, New York, Dallas, the Pea Body Hotel, Las Vegas. You do not fly around young people. I mean, this goes back to if we recall with Michael Jackson about why do you share a bed with a child? Why do you have all these things? Why do you fly them all around?
PHILLIPS: You may hear odd behavior like why flying them around, why sharing the same bed, but where's the proof that there was any sexual abuse? You say there are e-mails, there are texts. What do those e-mails say? What do those texts say? What kind of concrete evidence do you have besides the he said/she said that sexual abuse took place?
BERNSTEIN: Absolutely. What they say is really strong, first of all. You know, I worked with sexual abuse victims. I was a prosecutor for a number of years. I speak on this top of good deal.
PHILLIPS: Tell me what was so strong, B.J. I mean, what exactly they told you and then tell me what more reasons that really stood out to you.
BERNSTEIN: The emotion. The intensity. The -- very strong description of what sexual acts occurred. The progression of it. This covenant ceremony which was like a wedding ceremony with Anthony Flag. I mean, this is not just someone giving a vague thing, oh, yes, one time he did this or a couple times.
PHILLIPS: What is the covenant ceremony, this marriage ceremony? Is this some way of Bishop Long saying you are now under me? Or I am your -- we're married and I'm in charge of you? Explain that to me.
BERNSTEIN: It was an exchange of jewelry and reading -- the bishop reads biblical scripture to them and talks to him about how I have your back and you have mine. This is a young man who had no father in his life. That at 14 years old he -- his family moved -- both of these families moved to Georgia to be in this church.
And he immediately reaches out and finds out their innermost details. I want a father. I want nothing more than a father. I will be your father, son. You can tell me everything.
PHILLIPS: So, how did the sexual abuse happen? This just sounds like mentorship. This sounds like, you know --
BERNSTEIN: They were groomed for it. I mean, this is part of the allegations and we sued the Longfellow Academy, as well. From 14 to 17 years old, the age of consent for sexual context that we give the bishop to defense to that is 16 years old. From 14 -- he gets to know them and gets the trust and then bit by bit, first it's a hug. It's just like any sexual predator or we're sitting and watching a football game and you put your legs up on their lap and then there is -- can you -- one of the boys described going to the gym.
Oh, can you massage my neck? And then there's another massage. And it just slowly breaks down. Ask any victim of sexual abuse, it is a progression. It doesn't start out at one thing and then it gets to the point of the most serious allegations of this lawsuit. PHILLIPS: So, what happened? What clicked? What was the -- why are they coming forward now?
BERNSTEIN: Some of the boys started talking, and there are other people who are out there who have spoken to me that we are vetting their situation now. Ando also, there is some fear on their part about coming forward. I mean, it is -- yesterday in my office, these two young men with their mothers sat in my office, one of them weeping with fear and concern and reading the complaint one more time, because I said, you are going to be crucified for what you're saying.
There are people who love this man. Just like any other abuse victim, and they just said, we have to do it, and they know there are others.
PHILLIPS: But is there any way to prove that sexual contact actually happened?
BERNSTEIN: You know what? There is because of this. Every case in America, every child molestation case is one person's word against another, and when you hear it, and we're not going to have them on TV. I've told everybody. We're not trotting them out on TV.
What I'm going to do is this, I am ready to put them under oath with Bishop Long get spend money on the best attorneys in this world, and they can question those young men, and then I'll get to question the bishop and then we'll really see what's going on. And that coupled with the excessive number of phone calls. I'm going to be able subpoena -- this man is on the phone with them all the time. He is supposedly the bishop.
You know, being the bishop for 33,000 members of a church. He knows presidents. He knows famous people. He is out, you know, proselytizing the world, and yet, he has time to e-mail these kids all the time? I have the private e-mail addresses (INAUDIBLE). I am getting the phone records. I have the passports.
I am getting where they checked in the hotels. We are going to subpoena the Black Amex cards that are used by the church's money to pay for these things. I have the W-2s. And then, we'll have some other things as well that will be given to counsel.
PHILLIPS: We'll follow the case. B.J. Bernstein, thanks so much.
BERNSTEIN: Thanks.
PHILLIPS: Finally, a scandalous story about the Catholic Church that has nothing to do with priests and sex abuse. Now, this one has to do with the giant Vatican bank and $30 million that some think might have been laundered.
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KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Let's get straight to CNN deputy political director Paul Steinhauser at the CNNPolitics.com desk. What's crossing Paul?
PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey let's talk about big campaign cash, Kyra. The president is up in New York City today for a lot of official business. But Barack Obama is also are going to have a little time to do some fund raising.
We know that the president today will team up with the top two Democrats in Congress, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid the Senate Major Leader for a big fund raiser for the Democratic Party in New York City. Remember campaign cash so crucial as these midterms close in.
Also I learned and check this out right here on the CNN Political Ticker. Joe Biden, the Vice President also getting into the campaign cash mode today. He's going to be in Boston for a fund-raiser later today with Senator Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas. Of course, Lincoln faces a very tough re-election.
Hey, that Senate race -- that governor's race in New York State has gotten a lot more interesting. A brand-new poll out this morning suggests that the Republican nominee in New York who pulled the upset last week at the primary Carl Paladino, a developer who's backed by the Tea Party Movement, well, he's only six points down now to Andrew Cuomo, the attorney general of New York State and the son of the former governor. So that race looks like it's a lot closer according to a new Quinnipiac Poll.
And finally, Kyra, tomorrow marks six-month mark since President Obama signed into law that health care bill. Today, just two hours from right now he is going to be talking about the new health care bill.
Is it helping or hurting his party as the midterms close in? Well, check this recent CNN Opinion Research Corporation National Poll. And we asked, which party do you think will do a better job on health care? And you can see right there Americans appear to be divided so health care may not be the plus for Democrats that they thought it may have been earlier this year. Kyra -- back to you.
PHILLIPS: All right, Paul thanks.
We're going to have our next political update in just about an hour. And a reminder you can get all the latest political news on our Web site, CNNPolitics.com.
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PHILLIPS: All right we're keeping track of lots of developments in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM.
Let's go ahead and start with our Ed Lavandera -- Ed.
ED LAVANDERA, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, we're keeping tabs on the scandal involving Bishop Eddie Long with the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, one of the largest mega churches in the south, a very influential pastor being accused of sexual abuse. We'll have the latest coming up.
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Ted Rowlands in Los Angeles. The Bell City leaders were arrested yesterday. These are the guys that are accused of lining their pockets with taxpayers' money, arrested yesterday. They'll be in court later today.
We'll have that story coming up at the top of the hour.
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: And I'm Poppy Harlow in New York. Americans dealing with record foreclosures but guess what, there's new evidence that some of those foreclosures were pushed through without verification of the facts or proper documentation -- Allied Bank (ph) at the center of all of it.
We'll have the details coming up.
PHILLIPS: All right, thanks guys.
And Theresa Lewis scheduled to die tomorrow; the first execution of a Virginia woman in nearly a century. Next hour, a death penalty expert complains why she should not be put to death.
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PHILLIPS: All right, let's face it, it's tough being a Catholic these days and as the faith-shaking hit just keeps coming. You have to wonder what the Vatican is thinking, and what it's going to do to prevent this nonstop stream of scandals.
As if the sex scandals aren't enough, like the recent ones in Milwaukee where the Archdiocese fired nine priests accused of sexually abusing children, and the now dead Milwaukee priest who admitted to sexual contact with students at the school for the deaf. He was never charged.
Then there's Belgium, a report came out a couple of weeks ago that detailed sex abuse allegations in nearly every diocese there. Thirteen alleged victims killed themselves.
And now another alleged sin that has nothing to do with sex -- money laundering. The kind of crime you might expect from someone like Tony Soprano and not the Vatican.
However, prosecutors in Italy have seized $30 million from the Vatican Bank. Apparently it didn't provide enough information about a couple of big wire transfers, and the red flags went up and those who knew -- who know money laundering the best came out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEFFREY ROBINSON, MONEY LAUNDERING EXPERT, AUTHOR: When you get to big corporations or institutions, what they tend to do is they take money and put it into slush funds that they hide so that the source of that money that they then spend on, say, corruption or political influence is not directly related back to them. (END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Robinson says that the Vatican Bank is the most secret bank in the world and that there's no way to know how much money it controls. The Vatican, however, claims to be perplexed and baffled by that probe and says it aims for full transparency.
Well, one of the aims to the Pope's trip to the U.K. last week was to combat what he calls aggressive secularism. And in a recent poll, in Benedict's home country they actually suggest that one out of every four German Catholics is thinking about leaving the church.
Clearly, in Europe especially, the Vatican has a lot of work to do to win people's trust back. The seemingly endless stream of sex and now money stories isn't going to help that cause.
CNN's Diana Magnay have been covering one Vatican crisis after another. She's actually with us from Berlin to talk about this latest one -- Diana.
DIANA MAGNAY, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi Kyra. Well, you're right. They just don't stop coming, those scandals. This one, as you said, involves the transfer of some $30 million that the Vatican Bank was trying to transfer from an Italian bank account to two other bank accounts across Italy, and the Italian prosecutor has said it did not provide the necessary documentation to prove that those funds didn't come from money laundering.
Remember, the Vatican is a sovereign state, so it isn't answerable to anybody as to how it moves the funds around necessarily. It's not part of the EU banking system and therefore is not being part of that system; it means that it is subject to must more stringent money laundering -- anti-money laundering controls.
The Vatican has said that it is perplexed and baffled and it fully supports its president who is under investigation and has been trying in recent years to become more transparent because it wants to belong to the white list of the OECD and it wants its banking operations to be completely transparent. But as we heard, it is a very, very secretive institution. It's very difficult to read the Vatican in terms of sex abuse. It is also incredibly difficult to find out what's going on in terms of its banking activities -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: And you just wonder if the scandals will cease.
Diana Magnay, appreciate it.
And as a cardinal and Vatican official, what did the pope know and when?
CNN is taking a special look at the scandals that have rocked the Catholic Church in a special investigation this weekend. Two chances to watch. Saturday and Sunday, 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
