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Terrorist Plot to Mimic Mumbai Attack; President Rallies Democrats; Ten "Super Foods"; Actor Tony Danza's New Gig: Teacher; State Official Slams Gay Student; Eating Healthier for Less

Aired September 29, 2010 - 09:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Well, Kiran, you hit it.

(CROSSTALK)

PHILLIPS: No. He's not admitting it but he is going to play guitar with them. That should be interesting. I can't wait to see how he lines up against those guys. That ought to be interesting, huh?

ROBERTS: Hey. You know, I played golf with Alex years ago so now I'm playing guitar. I'll be on his stage.

PHILLIPS: Yes. Big, big difference. Golf versus the guitar with Rush.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Yes. Huge difference.

ROBERTS: That was the same. The swing is a little different with a guitar.

PHILLIPS: All right, guys. Have a great day. Good morning, everybody.

A young conservative activist's pimp outfit and undercover work made him infamous and got him arrested. Now he tried to embarrass CNN with undercover cameras, condoms and sex toys.

You're not a man. You're a monster. That's the message from this young man to his former mega church pastor.

And at least two kids this school year bullied to the point of suicide. Seems like we're picking up right where we left off last year. Today, you'll hear from gay students who are fighting back.

I'm Kyra Phillips and you're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

What future terror attacks might look like. They might look like Mumbai, India. Nearly two years ago. Guys with guns and grenades going where tourists and business people are and hunting them down. A different plan of attack than, say, one guy planting a bomb in an SUV and taking off.

A German man of Afghan descent who trained with terrorists is now in U.S. custody. Reportedly telling intelligence agents that this is how a terror plot in Europe was supposed to pan out. And apparently Osama bin Laden signed off on it.

Again, we're talking about Europe in this case.

Our senior international correspondent Nic Robertson has been following the story. He's in our Abu Dhabi bureau this morning.

So, Nic, clarify this plot for us. Was it an actual plot that was foiled and were there actually any arrests?

NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: There haven't been any arrest that we're aware of, Kyra. And one of the reasons for that is the would-be attackers, it appears, never left the tribal border region of Pakistan where this plot was being hatched.

Ahmed Sadiki was the German-Afghan picked up in Kabul, transferred to U.S. custody. He has been talking a lot according to German counterterrorism officials and his information is that which has led to an increase in drone attacks inside Pakistan on these sites where these jihadists have their training.

It has also led to European counterterrorism officials becoming aware of this Mumbai-style attack in Britain, in France and in Germany. Although Britain and Germany are both saying that no one was in any immediate danger and that appears to be because the plotters and potential attackers were still there in that tribal border region -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. So let's -- what are U.S. officials actually saying about this now?

ROBERTSON: Well, what they're saying is that a Mumbai-style attack is the sort of nightmare scenario for attacking, you know, what we would call soft targets rather than sort of hard structures like government buildings and such like an airport that have tightened security.

This sort of attack -- hotels, potentially shopping malls as we've seen in Britain -- is softer and easier to target. And people trying to plan and perpetrate these attacks that are just using small explosives, hand grenades, automatic weapons are much harder to sort of track down and interdict, if you will, than people trying to build bombs as we have seen those trying to build these homemade bombs.

Najibullah Zazi, most recently planned to attack New York transport network, was partially tracked because he'd been buying large amounts of hydrogen peroxide to make explosives.

That kind of stuff is tipping off authorities so it appear that al Qaeda is changing their tactics and certainly that's what U.S. counterterrorism experts are fearing and are concerned about right now -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Got it. Nic Robertson, we'll definitely stay on the story. We appreciate it. Also an update on several developing stories starting with the allegations of sexual coercion against mega church Bishop Eddie Long. One of the young men accusing him has a message for his former pastor.

Jamal Parris actually spoke to Atlanta TV station WAGA saying, quote, "That man cannot look me in the eye and tell me we did not live this pain. While you can sit in front of the church and tell them that you categorically deny it? You can't say that to our face and you know this. You are not a man. You are a monster."

Parris and three other men filed lawsuits accusing Long of using his power and influence within the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church to lure them into sex acts. Long's spokesperson says that the pastor denies those allegations and calls the charges a shakedown for money.

Classes will resume today at the University of Texas at Austin. A day after a student opened fire with an assault rifle on campus. Police say 19-year-old Colton Tooley randomly fired shots from an AK-47 before killing himself. \

No one else was hurt but the gun fire sent students and employees running for cover as a warning blared over the loud speakers.

And former President Jimmy Carter spent the night in a Cleveland hospital with an upset stomach but he's not letting that keep him from his book tour. He's scheduled to appear at a signing in D.C. tonight.

His family says that he's doing fine and that he checked in as a precaution. The former president turns 86 on Friday.

President Obama is in the middle of a four-state tour pushing his economic agenda and encouraging Democrats to vote in November, but the talk turned personal at a town hall-style event in New Mexico when a woman asked the president about his faith.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: So I came to my Christian faith later in life and it was because the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life that I would want to lead. Being my brothers and sisters keeper. Treating others as they would treat me.

And I think also understanding that, you know, that Jesus Christ dying for my sins spoke to the humility we all have to have as human beings. That we're sinful and we're flawed and we make mistakes. And that, you know, we achieve salvation through the grace of God.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: President Obama's faith and Democratic voters may be tested right now as he aims to rally the base ahead of the midterm elections.

CNN's Suzanne Malveaux joins us from Des Moines, Iowa, where the president will actually be speaking this morning.

Hey, Suzanne.

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra, well, the president has heard a variety of questions from folks. He heard from a young man who is asking about the fact that his father's a veteran and has not received a treatment and he broke down and cried.

The president gave him a big hug, said it's OK to be emotional about these kinds of things. All kind of things the people want to ask the president. One of the moments, a big moment, of course, was yesterday.

That was at the University of Wisconsin at Madison when about 26,000 students gathered in an overflow crowd at the university to convey to the president that they were still behind him.

I had a chance to talk to some students. It was very clear, however, Kyra, that there's not that same kind of wild excitement from the campaign two years ago, that they have to really be patient for the president's promises to come to fruition.

The president acknowledged, he said, look. This is not a time when we've got Beyonce and Bono out there campaigning with us, but that he is trying and that it's really important for these young voters to come out during the midterm elections, that that is the way that he is going to be able to fulfill his agenda.

But Kyra, as I said before, some of these students has -- said, yes, they'll go ahead and participate about five weeks from now. Others not so sure but at least they were coming out to take a listen to what the president had to say -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: So how does the White House actually choose the families that host these backyard events, Suzanne?

MALVEAUX: Well, one of the advantages, Kyra, of being out here at 4:30 in the morning.

(LAUGHTER)

MALVEAUX: Had a chance to actually talk to the couple, Jeff and Sandy Club. This is their home behind us here. And the White House doesn't really give away a lot of information about how this happens, but they certainly did.

They said about a week ago they got a call from a White House advance staffer saying they were one of eight families being considered. They were both completely baffled by this because, yes, they voted for Obama but they're not big fundraisers. That, you know, they're not big in the community when it comes to politics.

They got the call. Said that they had been chosen and they asked why and they said, well, because of your backyard. It's a beautiful backyard. It's a lot of oak trees, elms, evergreens, that kind of thing. And so they are hosting their neighbors and it was fun because we actually saw them early this morning.

They were trying to hide their cat, figure out where to put the cat so the cat doesn't interfere with this event with the president.

I talked to Jeff Club who said really this is kind of winning the lottery but they really didn't have to do anything. And there are 85 chairs that they have to fill. They were told invite your neighbors, invite your friends, your family. Doesn't matter what the political affiliation is. It's OK.

And so they're filling those chairs with family and friends. And there was even one Republican neighbor, they all are bringing their own chairs, who brought a chair and said, look, you know, I don't have to show up but it's the president of the United States. Please take my chair and have my chair represent me here at this event.

And they had a family reunion. Jeff Club said, look, their family was going to come in on Friday. They decided to move it up three days so they flown in the parents, the sister, all of them are coming. They're going to be filling these seats asking the president some questions.

So really interesting, fascinating how this has all come about but they were just as shocked as anybody to find out that they had actually been chosen.

PHILLIPS: Yes. I can just imagine. Oh my god. We need to plant, we need to mow. What do we do about the cat?

Major stress --

MALVEAUX: Exactly.

PHILLIPS: When you have the president rolling in. Suzanne, thanks.

Well, he is known for his pranks and undercover antics and now a young conservative activist who posed as a pimp tries to run a prank on CNN with a hidden camera. Didn't work.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Posing as a pimp and making undercover videos. Remember that? Conservative activist James O'Keefe is back at his pranks again. This time CNN was his target.

But before we get to that, let's remind you of some of his antics. Last year O'Keefe and fellow activist Hannah Giles dressed up as the pimp and prostitute in a sting operation to uncover alleged wrongdoing at ACORN.

ACORN was a group that advocated for low and middle income people and worked to register voters. O'Keefe and Giles visited several ACORN offices describing their illicit business and they taped ACORN workers allegedly giving them advice on setting up a brothel and other advice on how to skirt the law.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I intend to use the profit from the tricks the girls perform to fund --

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right. Do you think every single -- do you think every congressman, every legislator, do you think that even Obama, you know, or the president --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Or any of them, ever, ever actually put down every single resource where they got their money?

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, looks like the ACORN workers fell for the sting, hook, line and sinker but it turns out prosecutors in New York and California eventually found no evidence of wrongdoing by ACORN and the California investigation found that the videos have been heavily edited.

In O'Keefe's next big splash, he taped associates entering the New Orleans office of Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu posing as a telephone repairman. He got arrested for that one. Pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of entering a federal office under false pretenses.

He's now on probation.

And for more than six months, CNN has been working on a documentary that follows a group of young conservative political activists. We wanted to learn more about the movement and their message. Frustrated with the mainstream media, many of them use undercover cameras and social media to expose what they consider to be corruption.

But the project took a very strange turn when the cameras were almost turned on it. Special Investigations Unit Correspondent Abbie Boudreau here with the details of what happened.

ABBIE BOUDREAU, CNN SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS UNIT CORRESPONDENT: It all started with a phone call from James O'Keeffe. And James, like you mentioned, is best known for his role in the ACORN videos, when he dressed up as a pimp

James called me. He wanted to talk about an upcoming shoot that he was going to be there for that we were scheduled to be a part of. And we were going to be there to film it for our documentary. He had concerns of CNN being there. He wanted the talk to me face-to-face, an in-person meeting to go over some of his concerns.

And so he called up and said, "Can you meet me and one of my colleagues, Izzy Santa, in Maryland, and please come alone." And I said, yes.

PHILLIPS: OK. So red flags didn't go up at that point.

BOUDREAU: Well, red flags always go out at that point.

PHILLIPS: Right. BOUDREAU: But you're a reporter. I'm a reporter.

PHILLIPS: Yes.

BOUDREAU: We want people to feel comfortable during a meeting.

PHILLIPS: Sure.

BOUDREAU: And so I did agree to go. And luckily I had a flip cam with me, and after the so-called meeting, I recorded what had just happened.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BOUDREAU (voice-over): When I pulled up to the property, Izzy was waiting for me.

BOUDREAU (on camera): She said, "I need to talk to you. Can I get in the car?" And I was like, "OK."

So I noticed that she had, like, a little bit of dirt on her face. Her lip was shaking. She seemed really uncomfortable. And I asked her if she was OK. And the first thing that she basically said to me was, "I'm not recording you. I'm not recording you. Are you recording me?"

I was -- "No."

She says, "I need to tell you something."

I said, "OK, is everything OK? You're making me nervous."

She said, "No. No. Not everything. Everything's not OK. I am a moral person. I need to tell you something."

"What is about to happen? Tell me what is going on."

She said, "You're about to be 'Punk'd.'"

BOUDREAU (voice-over): Izzy told me the plan was to bring me close to the dock and then ask me if I would consent to having my meeting with James recorded on an audio recorder. If I said yes, she would get me on the boat where James was waiting, and where hidden video cameras were rolling.

BOUDREAU (on camera): "Why is his goal to get me on the boat?"

She said, "Because, on the boat, he's going to be there, dressed up, and he's going to have strawberries and champagne waiting for you. And he was going to hit on you the whole time."

BOUDREAU (voice-over): She said the sole purpose of the "Punk" was to embarrass me and CNN. I went to the backyard to see the boat for myself and to try to meet James. But he didn't get off the boat, so I walked back to my car. Then, right before I left, James walked up to me and explained that it would make him feel more comfortable if the so-called interview were recorded.

BOUDREAU (on camera): "That's just not something I'm comfortable with is to have a conversation recorded. Plus, it's not an interview. I'm just here to try to address your concerns about this upcoming shoot. But you ended up wanting me to come all; the way out here. You told me we were going to be at your office, and instead, you want me to come on some boat with you. And you want it to be recorded. Those are ground rules you should have said over the phone. And you didn't."

And he was like, "Well, what are you ashamed of?"

That's when I said, "All right. This is where the conversation ends." And I said to him, "It was a pleasure."

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Gosh. So, just imagine what would happened if she wouldn't have tipped you off.

BOUDREAU: I know.

PHILLIPS: She said she's got a moral compass and, as a female, she didn't want to see this happen to you. But why do you think she did this? I mean, you've talked to her since then, right?

BOUDREAU: Sure. Oh, yes. That's pretty much her story. She just feels like -- at first she did say, "Well, maybe 'Punking' a CNN reporter, maybe that would be really funny. Maybe we could get them to -- maybe we could get her talking about Fox News or something like that."

But when she actually received the plan, the full plan, which there's a lot more to this than what you just saw, she said there's no way she was going to go through with it.

PHILLIPS: So, tell me more about this full plan. What did James O'Keeffe actually say about this, as well?

BOUDREAU: Well, the full plan is 13-page document called "The CNN Caper" document. And it's divided into two parts. The first part is, how to "Punk" CNN. How to trick CNN into reporting a false story. Either about Sarah Palin, or the Tea Party movement, and then giving Fox News a heads up of what we were about to report as a false story, so that they could quote, unquote, "pounce" and undercut CNN's credibility. That's the first part.

The second part is about how to "Punk" me, specifically. How to seduce me on this boat. In the document, it lists off all of these kinds of props the boat was staged with. A blindfold, fuzzy handcuffs, naked pictures of women, posters. Et cetera, et cetera.

PHILLIPS: Have you ever thought about if you did get on that boat, what you would have done?

BOUDREAU: I wouldn't even -- PHILLIPS: Socked him between the eyes and pushed him off the boat?

(LAUGHTER)

BOUDREAU: I never would have gotten on the boat, because part of me getting on the boat, I would have had to have agreed to have been taped.

PHILLIPS: OK.

BOUDREAU: And I was not comfortable with that.

PHILLIPS: Sure.

BOUDREAU: Yes.

PHILLIPS: I mean, the whole thing is fishy. All right. So the pattern with other young conservatives that you followed. Similar, totally different? You know, what do they think about James O'Keeffe?

BOUDREAU: Right. We followed a lot of young conservatives for this documentary. This is just a strange turn that this documentary took. The other people that we followed are very passionate, young people. Whether you agree or totally disagree with what they feel and what their beliefs are, they -- they're just passionate and excited group of young people.

But just let me add one other thing. We did receive a statement from James O'Keeffe.

PHILLIPS: About the document? The CNN document?

BOUDREAU: About the document, yes. He says, "That is not my work product. When it was sent to me, I immediately found certain elements highly objectionable and inappropriate, and did not consider them for one minute following it."

And just to be clear, his mentor and fellow activist is listed as the writer. James is listed as the activist, the person who would have acted out this role.

PHILLIPS: Hmm. So is there more to this?

BOUDREAU: So much more. So much more to this. And it will all be revealed in the documentary.

PHILLIPS: OK, great. We look forward to it. Thanks so much, Abbie.

BOUDREAU: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: All right. And that documentary is actually going to air -- when exactly is it?

BOUDREAU: Saturday. PHILLIPS: It's Saturday, it's his Saturday. There we go. "Right on the Edge." 8:00 and 11:00, twice, right? Saturday -- twice on Saturday?

BOUDREAU: Twice on Saturday.

PHILLIPS: 8:00 and 11:00, that's right?

BOUDREAU: Twice on Sunday

PHILLIPS: Gotcha. OK. Thanks, Abbie.

Well, there are ten super foods that can keep you from getting sick, and our Dr. Sanjay Gupta is actually going shopping for them, and you're going to come along and learn with him.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: CNN has taken a cross-country food journey all this week, and we've sent reporting teams to ever corner of America and beyond. Our mission is to get fresh answers about how our food is grown, how the choices we make impact our health, our state of mind, our budgets and, of course, the pure joy of eating.

So we teamed up with the new cnn.com food destination, eatocracy.com, to bring you "Eatocracy: Mind. Body. Wallet." And as a part of our effort, we're looking at ten foods that can help your body fight off illness. Our Dr. Sanjay Gupta actually takes us shopping for them.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT (on camera): You've probably seen the lists. Super foods. The ten foods you should eat every single day. What is it about super foods? What makes them so super? Can they protect you? Or do they prevent you in some way from getting sick? Let's take a look. Come on. Hey, Ann

ANN DUNAWAY TEH, REGISTERED DIETICIAN: Hi, how are you, Sanjay?

GUPTA: Thanks so much for meeting us.

DUNAWAY TEH: Thank you for having me.

GUPTA: So I see you're hanging out by the fruit, the berries. If you had to pick one fruit out of these here, what would you say is sort of the ideal super food and why?

DUNAWAY TEH: Blueberries are definitely the ideal super food. And it's because of their dark, rich color. And that just means it's got a lot more anti-oxidants in it, and it's really great for memory. Also for eye health. And it might also help lower bad cholesterol.

GUPTA: OK. So, definitely put berries on the list of super foods. Leafy greens is what we talk about all the time. What about leafy greens? DUNAWAY TEH: The dark green color lets you know, again, it's got a lot of nutrients in it. Great source of calcium and fiber.

GUPTA: There's a lot of foods that are good for you. What makes a food super?

DUNAWAY TEH: A super food is what we call a nutrient-dense food that's going to do a whole lot more for you with less calories expended.

GUPTA: Can it erase some of my other bad eating habits?

DUNAWAY TEH: If you start replacing some of the those bad eating habits with more fruits and vegetables, it can certainly help. But if you're going to be loading it down with other really unhealthy foods, it's probably not the best choice. At least you've got them on the plate.

GUPTA: Can the foods in some ways act like medicines in the sense they can decrease inflammation, decrease your cholesterol? Things like that?

DUNAWAY TEH: There are some studies that show some of these foods can do that. But it's also part of our lifestyle, that we want to get, as well.

GUPTA: Sweet to potatoes, I know, are on your list.

DUNAWAY TEH: Yes. Sweet potatoes are great. The Center for Science and Public Interest calls these one of the healthiest vegetables that you can eat. And that's because they are so packed with nutrients. Their deep, orange color lets you know there's Vitamin A in there, which is really great for our eyes. Also, there's Vitamin E four our skin.

GUPTA: Fish is, I know, very much on your list.

DUNAWAY TEH: The fatty, cold-water fish that have the omega-3 fatty acids, which is the good, healthy fat that helps fight inflammation. And those are salmon, halibut, mackerel, tuna, sardines and herring are all great fish that have a lot of omega-3s in them.

GUPTA: Now, hearing all that about super foods, you may think, "Great. But I don't have a market like this in my backyard." Good point. A lot of people don't. But you can get a lot of these foods frozen. You can even get them canned.

Keep in mind, eat those super foods with a healthy diet in general. Every now and then, even get a little bit of exercise. Back to you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: All right. We want the know about your school lunches now. Were they like something out of a horror movie? A mystery movie, maybe, like "Mystery Meat"? Or were they delightful and wonderful like "Benji" the movie? Go to my blog, cnn.com/kyra or Twitter me @kyracnn. Tell me what was on your tray back in the day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Americans see the economic glass as half empty. The biggest concerns, job prospects and unfavorable business conditions. That's never good news for Wall Street.

Alison Kosik is watching it all for us at the New York Stock Exchange.

Hey, Alison.

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Kyra. You know, believe it or not, how we feel about the economy directly affects what happens right here on Wall Street. And yesterday, we learned that consumer confidence, it hit a seven-month low. So, yes, we are starting off slightly lower.

But meantime gold prices continue to be on a tear. They're hitting another record high this morning. $1,314 an ounce. The problem is, that Wall Street doesn't know where the economy is headed at this point so investors, they're gravitating toward investments with more safety, a little more certainty like gold or bonds. Gold prices are up more than 30 percent compared to last year.

Two years after the government handed out billions of dollars in bailouts, officials are now trying to figure out an exit strategy. Government and AIG officials are reportedly meeting today. The focus, how the Treasury can gradually reduce its stake in the insurer. Tax payers, by the way, own almost 80 percent of AIG.

All right. We're a couple of minutes into the trading day right now. The Dow Industrials down about 31. The Nasdaq off about 8.

And Kyra, this is your favorite topic, maybe. Twitter. It seems everybody's on it these days and new numbers prove it. Twitter surpassed MySpace to become the number three social networking site. Twitter had 96 million visitors last month. I tell you what, it's going to take a lot, though, to unseat the number one company. I'm talking about Facebook. It had almost 600 million visitors in August. I know you are quite the Tweeter.

PHILLIPS: You just totally called me out. A minute ago I said "Twitter me." I guess it's "Tweet me." I didn't say it right.

KOSIK: Yes.

PHILLIPS: What can I tell you? I'm still learning.

KOSIK: We talked about this before.

PHILLIPS: I'm a little behind the times and I have help with my page, by the way. So, for full disclosure.

Thanks, Alison.

KOSIK: Sure. PHILLIPS: Jobless but overpaid. Sounds like an oxymoron. But thousands of unemployed people in North Carolina who are getting jobless benefits were paid too much and now they have to give some of that money back. The state began sending out letters last week to about 38,000 people who were improperly paid unemployment benefits. Some weren't paid enough but most were paid too much. And now they'll get less from the state each month until the difference is made up. That's leaving many people wondering how to make ends meet.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I don't feel like I am looking very stressed about it but I don't know where I'm going to get my rent money this month.

DAVID CLEGG, EMPLOYMENT SECURITY COMMISSION: We're talking about a very discrete number of people and a very discrete amount of money. And we are very transparent in making sure that those individuals get paid properly.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: People who were underpaid will get reimbursed. The state blames the mistake on an accounting problem.

Tony Danza has taken us on a taxi ride and he's made us ask "Who's the Boss?"

(VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, if you think of him as a hunky housekeeper, wait until you check out his latest role. It's not acting. It's real life. He actually spent a year teaching 10th graders in Philadelphia, high school as part of a reality show. And it wasn't easy.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Are you nervous?

TONY DANZA, ACTOR: I'm terrified.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Maybe you should wear more undershirts.

DANZA: Yes, yes. I know.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am actually like very concerned he is not qualified to be an English teacher.

DANZA: You're right. How about that, Monty (ph)? You're 100 percent right. You think you know so much and then you find out you don't know nothing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: If this doesn't work, you're out of here. OK?

(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: Well, that was a clip from his new show and he says it was a bumpy road that sometimes led to tears, his own. That bring us to our AM Extra. Here's what he told our John Roberts about self doubt as he hit the books.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN ROBERTS, CNN ANCHOR, "AMERICAN MORNING": A lot of crying we see, though, is you expressing self-doubt.

DANZA: Oh, yes. Well originally --

ROBERTS: It's like I don't know if I can take it.

DANZA: I thought I made a mistake, John. I thought -- you know, it sounded like a great idea -- it's like the guy who jumps out of the window. It felt like a great idea at the time. It felt like that. I wanted to do it, I wanted to show what a teacher really goes through, what a first-year teacher -- I wanted to know what a first-year teacher really goes through.

I wanted to do something. I'm almost 60. I want to do something with myself and then, boom, I was there. And I was going through all the -- here's a weird thing. I just remembered. You made me think of this. I kept hearing the kids are so great. The kids are so great. And then go to the seminars and you'd hear, you know, like what happens if this happens? It would scare me. I started to think, maybe the teachers are delusional and they're trying to fool me or something. But I felt like I maybe had made a mistake and that I might let these kids down and I might make a fool of myself on TV, or intellect would be on display. I mean, it is like a -- it was crazy.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, his year at the head of the classroom is documented in the series "Teach Tony Danza." It premieres Friday, 10:00 p.m. Eastern on A&E.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right. Try to imagine Darth Vader, Luke Skywalker Jabba the Hutt or any of those eye-grabbing Star Wars battle scenes in 3D, because soon you won't have to.

(VIDEO CLIP, "STAR WARS")

PHILLIPS: Starting in 2012 -- wow that was so long ago -- director George Lucas will be re-releasing the six-film series in 3F. First up, "Episode One: The Phantom Menace." And after that, look for the studio to release each film in order in consecutive years. Lucas says that the success of "Avatar" convinced him to push ahead with "Star Wars" in 3D.

Checking top stories now. A Senate panel begins a hearing on the release of the Pan Am 103 bomber. The Scottish government released the Libyan man last year because he had cancer and wasn't likely to live more than a few months. He's still alive.

Former President Jimmy Carter will be staying in a Cleveland hospital, at least for now. Carter who turns 86 Friday, suffered an upset stomach while on a book tour.

And BP is shaking up management following the Gulf oil disaster. The company is also launching a new safety and operational risk unit.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right. Let's check in with our politics. That's deputy political director Paul Steinhauser. He's at the desk there.

What you got for us?

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: I'm at the desk.

Let's talk about former President Bill Clinton, Kyra. He's been on the campaign trail a lot this campaign season and we're going to see more of the former president next month. We have learned that the former president's going out to Washington State to campaign with Patty Murray, Democratic senator out there, bidding for a fourth term, facing a very tough reelection. That story is brand new right now this morning on the CNN political ticker. Again, we're going to see more of Bill Clinton.

Let's also talk about something else. You know what, Kyra, you get the story first because I'm writing it. It hasn't even hit the ticker yet. What am I talking about? West Virginia. If the Republicans -- if -- they win back the Senate, one of the places they could do it is West Virginia, where a Democratic seat held for over 50 years by the late Senator Robert Byrd, there's a big battle there right now. The Democratic Governor Joe Manchin is the Democrats' candidate in a special election in November. John Raese is the Republican nominee. And today, new ads up on both sides. Really nasty there in West Virginia. We're going to keep our eyes on that contest. Like I said, again, if the Republicans -- if -- they win back control of the Senate, one of the places they may do it may be West Virginia.

And finally, let's talk about a rock star from New Jersey. No, I'm not talking about Bruce Springsteen, not even Bon Jovi. Saw him last year in concert. Very good concert, by the way. Who am I talking about? Chris Christie, the Republican governor of the state. He's really turning into a Republican rock star. He's been the man in demand on the campaign trail this year for Republicans, just like Clinton has been for the Democrats in a way. And our Deidre Walsh is learning from Republican sources that Christie's going to be right here in Washington today to kind of give a pep talk to House Republicans just before they close it out and head back on the campaign trail. Remember last year, Christie pulled a big upset in the election beating out the incumbent Democratic Jon Corzine in that gubernatorial contest.

A lot more stuff coming your way on the ticker. Kyra, back to you right now. PHILLIPS: Sounds good. Thanks, Paul.

We're going to have your next political update in about an hour. A reminder, you can always go to our web site, as well -- CNNPolitics.com.

For months we've talked about the tragedy and outrage of bullying in our schools, especially the kind that targets kids who may be struggling with their sexual orientation. Coming up next, I'll tell you about what we think about bullying on the next level. The state official using his blog to actually bully a gay college student.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right.

For months we've talked about the tragedy and outrage of bullying in school, especially a kind that targets kids who might be struggling with their sexual orientation. At least two kids this school year allegedly were bullied to the point of suicide.

It seems like we are picking up right where we left off last year. Next hour, you're going to hear from some gay students who are fighting back. But this next story isn't about grade school and high school kids. Take a listen to this.

In Michigan, you actually have the assistant attorney general using his blog to slam the openly gay president of the University of Michigan student government. For the past six months, Andrew Shirvell has accused Chris Armstrong of things like flagrant sexual promiscuity with another guy in student government, seducing and influencing a previously conservative male student to the point where the student morphed into a proponent of the radical homosexual agenda, hosting a gay orgy in the dorm room and trying to recruit freshmen to join a homosexual lifestyle.

Anderson Cooper had a chance to challenge the assistant attorney general last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDREW SHIRVELL, MICHIGAN ASSISTANT ATTORNEY GENERAL: I'm doing this as a private citizen, off work time, as a university of Michigan alum. We're quibbling over tactics, we're not quibbling over substance.

The substance of the matter is Anderson, Chris Armstrong is a radical homosexual activist who got elected partly funded by the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund to promote a very deeply radical agenda at the University of Michigan.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, first of all, Mr. Shirvell, you're not in school anymore. And second of all, the students elected this guy president. If there's real problems, can't they just handle it? I just think there are something very wrong with a state official taking a beating like this on a college kid in a public forum like you're doing and harping on his sexuality. To me this just seems like bullying on another level.

It's funny how Michigan's attorney general can't put enough distance between his office and Shirvell. He actually told CNN that Shirvell's personal opinions are his and his alone but quote his "immaturity and lack judgment outside the office are clear". You bet they are. Maybe he'll be as classy as his boss one day.

All right. Here's a look at what we're working on for the next hour in the CNN NEWSROOM. Let's start with Lisa Desjardins in Capitol Hill. Hi, Lisa.

LISA DESJARDINS, CNN RADIO CAPITOL HILL CORRESPONDENT: Hey Kyra, food fight in Congress. Michelle Obama is actually running into a block from her own Democrats in the battle over what our kids should be eating at school. We'll have that story at the top of the hour.

ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: I'm Rob Marciano at the CNN Severe Weather Center, your hurricane headquarters where tropical storm Nicole has yet to come.

But the depression itself is big and sloppy circulation, a lot of rains and some flooding issues. That's in the next hour.

PHILLIPS: Also next hour, gay kids not taking it anymore. We're going to show you their pro active approach to the people who reject them and the bullies who torment them.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, CNN has taken a cross country food journey all this week and we've sent reporting teams to every corner of America and beyond. Our mission, to get fresh answers about how our food is grown and how the choices we make impact our health and state of mind and our budgets and also just the pure chore of eating.

So we teamed up with the new CNN.com Food Destination Eatocracy.com to bring you "Eatocracy: mind, body and wallet" and we're looking at eating right on a tight budget.

Now, it's pretty tough, just ask the University of Washington researchers. They actually found that calorie for calorie, junk food costs way less than fruits and veggies. We already know. And the healthy stuff is getting more and more expensive.

In the Seattle area, red apples actually cost 99 cents per pound in 2004. But by 2008, that jumped an entire dollar. But the prices of vending machine fare have held steady. So we give nutritionists a mission. Give a mom's grocery list to a healthy makeover without breaking her budget.

This is what we got.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) SHAVALERIE THURMAN, SINGLE MOTHER WITH 2 TEENAGED BOYS: Hi, my name is Shavalerie Thurman and I am the mother of two teenage boys: William, he is a senior and he's 17, and Winston, he's a sophomore and he's 15.

I spend about $250 to $300 every two weeks on groceries. And to me, that's a lot of money. I don't know if it's -- if it's a boy thing, but I find that they really eat a lot. And I end up buying a lot more snacks, I think, and a lot more junk just to make sure that they have extra stuff.

It is a little bit challenging. If I can get things for them but they're healthier and it cuts my bill in half, then that will be really good. I'm going to go and meet with a nutritionalist (sic) and just try to find some better ways for us to cut down on our grocery bill and but also eat a little healthier. What do you guys think?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's good.

THURMAN: You think that's good?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.

JULIE SCHWARTZ, NUTRIWELL COACHING, LLC: Hey, I'm Julie.

THURMAN: Hi I'm Shavalerie.

SCHWARTZ: Nice to meet you.

THURMAN: This will be exciting.

SCHWARTZ: Yes.

Now, do you typically have a budget that you try to follow?

THURMAN: For the most part, we cook every day.

SCHWARTZ: Ok.

And that actually is a wonderful way to budget. Because the more we cook from scratch, by far the less expensive it is. Fruits can be actually a very economical way to boost your nutrition and boost your weight loss efforts.

It would only cost you $2.50 a day to meet all the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables.

THURMAN: $2.50 per day per person? Or --

SCHARTZ: Per person.

SCHWARTZ: Protein actually is going to be our most expensive part of the meal. So -- trying to find some good choices for protein that are less expensive. You're going to save about 30 cents a pound just to spend five minutes to make your own patty. You're looking at about $31 in the course of a year. Serving baked beans is going to be a lot cheaper than the fries. Another way to save is to just decrease the amount of protein food we have per person. We got to fill our plate with other foods and often those are more economical and much healthier.

One way to save and it doesn't really take that much more time would be instead of using the frozen potatoes, is use fresh potatoes.

THURMAN: Ok.

SCHWARTZ: so you're looking at about three cents per serving versus about 17 cents. If you got a ten ounce bag of potato chips, it costs about $2.59. It seems like a cheap snack. You can buy four pounds of fiber vitamin C rich red potatoes instead for the same price; so ten ounces versus four pounds. It may be even going with carrots which you could get three pounds for just 12 servings for the same price.

There is a big misconception that healthy eating is expensive.

THURMAN: Right.

SCHWARTZ: And it really doesn't need to be.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Well we checked in with Shavalerie to see how things were going since her visit with the nutritionist. She says she's more conscious of the things that she's buying and she's weeding out as many processed foods as she can. But that comes with a trade-off. More time in the kitchen.

If you need advice on how to eat right, eatocracy.com has the answers. Kat Kinsman is the CNN.com editor for "Eatocracy" and she's helping take the mystery out of the food.

KAT KINSMAN, CNN.COM EATOCRACY EDITOR: You've been hearing the word "eatocracy" a lot on CNN this week. What that means is a food democracy which means that we talk about and celebrate all different kinds of food.

And so to help you out so we can all have a great conversation, we have a wonderful section on the site called "clarified" where we demystify the terms we're using a lot, including things like genetically-modified and sustainable and cage free.

We can have a tremendous conversation if we're all talking about and using the same language as we all understand what we're doing.

We also want to listen a lot to what our users have to say so we take these fabulous lunch time polls every day. We want to know a little bit more about your interests in food and how we can help you have a better conversation and eat more cleanly, eat more happily because we're all about -- all about joy of food on eatocracy.

Yesterday's lunchtime poll was all about peanut bans in school. You know, on another day it might be a slightly more fun topic. Later today we're talking about people suddenly being asked to pay for their snacks on airplanes. All different kinds of food coverage and we just want it to be useful and healthy and happy for you.

So we've also -- we also have a little bit of fun and talk about vending machines stealing your coins sometimes. But we help you come and just come in and enjoy food with us. We're going to have a great conversation.

PHILLIPS: All right Kat. Thanks so much.