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Races Get Personal, Sometimes Vicious; First Lady Popular with Crowds and Candidates; U.S. Giving Pakistan $2B to Fight Terror; JetBlue Flight Attendant Stephen Slater Works Out Plea Bargain for Outburst; Two Iraqi Friends Reunite Through Charity; Bank of America Restarting Foreclosure in 23 States; Shocking Chants from Yale Pledges; Latina Actress Making Great Strides

Aired October 19, 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, "AMERICAN MORNING": And the news continues here on CNN with Kyra Phillips in the "CNN NEWSROOM."

Good morning, Kyra.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Good morning you, guys.

Well, no more excuses for Pakistan. The U.S. handing over $2 billion worth of aid to fight terrorists. $2 billion for a country that might be hiding Osama bin Laden.

Twenty years, two wars and many miles couldn't break the bonds between these two best friends. We're going to show you a remarkable union in Iraq.

Well, be glad that we beeped the last word. Ivy League kids shouting degrading words that aren't even worthy of the gutter. A sexually- charged pledge ritual at one of America's prestigious colleges. We want you to weigh in.

Hi, everyone. I'm Kyra Phillips. And you're live in the CNN NEWSROOM.

We begin with the politics of anger and the power of change. Congress braces for what could be its biggest upheaval in years. Two weeks from today Americans take part in the crucial midterm elections and the control of Washington could hang in the balance.

President Obama is not on any ballot this election season nor is the economy, but both issues are driving voters to the polls and to opposite sides of the political divide.

Case in point, last night's gubernatorial debate in West Virginia.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN RAESE (R), WEST VA. GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: When you have laws like Obamacare, for instance, that will destroy the health care system. When I see a situation like cap and trade which is so bad for West Virginia. And when I see things like card check, when you look at TARP, when you look at the stimulus program that has failed America.

These are programs that we need to change in this country.

GOV. JOE MANCHIN (D), WEST VIRGINIA: I'm not here blaming President Obama. We need to fix it. And the bottom line was that we had all of the states that were falling through except West Virginia.

The stimulus package was passed. We have been criticized, I have been criticized for not spending all the stimulus quick enough. We shored up because we knew it would come to an end. We did not support the second round of stimulus and do not.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And that shadow of President Obama continues to loom, this time over the governor's race in New York. The Republican nominee grabbed hold of voter anger early on and won the backing of the Tea Party movement.

Carl Paladino has since stumbled in the polls but has remained on message by voicing the disgust and disconnect shared by a lot of voters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARL PALADINO (R), NEW YORK GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: I'm not your career Albany politician. I'm a builder from western New York. My critics, they want to say I'm angry.

No, I'm passionate about saving New York. Our government doesn't need a tweaking. It needs a major overhaul. Now.

ANDREW CUOMO (D), NEW YORK GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: We have to have zero tolerance for any waste, fraud, abuse or public integrity or public violation period.

Enforce the laws. That's what I've been doing as the attorney general on both sides of the aisle. Democrats and Republicans. If you break the law, you will go to jail.

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: As you probably know, Paladino's biggest misstep this campaign season was his strongly worded opposition to same-sex marriage. Critics even accused him of being homophobic and resurfaced last night at the debate.

Candidates were asked directly, do you support same-sex unions.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Do you support same-sex marriage, yes or no?

PALADINO: I don't -- I do not gay marriage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you. Trying to -- we're trying to squeeze time in here. Mr. Redlich?

WARREN REDLICH (L), NEW YORK GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: I don't have to think about my answer. I support gay marriage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Miss Davis?

KRISTIN DAVIS, NEW YORK GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: I strongly support gay marriage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Hawkins?

HOWIE HAWKINS, NEW YORK GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: Green Party strongly supports gay marriage. In fact we've married gays with our mayor and deputy mayor in Naples, New York in 2003 that started the whole ball rolling on that question.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Barron?

CHARLES BARRON, NEW YORK GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: Speaking for the Freedom Party, they have not taken a position on gay marriage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And Mr. Cuomo?

CUOMO: Strongly support gay marriage.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. McMillan?

JIMMY MCMILLAN, NEW YORK GUBERNATORIAL CANDIDATE: Rent Too Damn High Party feels if you want to marry a shoe, I'll marry you.

(LAUGHTER)

(END OF VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: But laughs are few even far between in other races. As the clock ticks down, the attacks are getting uglier.

CNN's Brian Todd with the seedy tactics.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Kentucky Senate debate.

BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): A high-profile Senate debate in Kentucky turns intensely personal from the opening bell when Republican candidate Rand Paul tears into his opponent.

RAND PAUL (R), KENTUCKY SENATE CANDIDATE: How ridiculous are you? You embarrass this race.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why was Rand Paul --

TODD: Paul's referring to this ad from Democrat Jack Conway about a so-called secret society Paul was accused of joining in college.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Why did rand Paul once tie a woman up, tell her to bow down before a false idol, and say his god was Aqua Buddha?

TODD: A claim that Paul has repeatedly dismissed. But at the debate, Conway not only ignored Paul's demand to apologize, he repeated this line several times as if he'd memorize it.

JACK CONWAY (D), KENTUCKY SENATE CANDIDATE: When is it ever appropriate to tie up a woman and ask her to kneel between a false god that you called Aqua Buddha?

TODD (on camera): What do you make of this? They barely get into attacks on economic issue before they launch right into this.

REID WILSON, EDITOR IN CHIEF, THE HOTLINE: Well, Brian, this is what we're seeing around the country these days. Washington, D.C. is terribly unpopular. Politicians are terribly unpopular. And the voters are in such an angry mood that they're not voting for anybody. They're really voting against the least acceptable option.

TODD (voice-over): The idea, says Reid Wilson, editor in chief of the political tip sheet, "The Hotline," is to drive up the negatives of one's opponent.

We also looked at other types of personal attacks.

(On camera): The McCain family did a double whammy this weekend. Check this out.

SEN. JOHN MCCAIN (R), ARIZONA: Barbara Boxer is the most bitterly partisan, most anti-defense senator in the United States Senate today. I know that because I've had the unpleasant experience of having to serve with her.

TODD (voice-over): Next day, McCain's daughter Megan lights up Delaware's Senate candidate Christine O'Donnell, a fellow Republican, on ABC's "This Week."

MEGAN MCCAIN, SEN. MCCAIN'S DAUGHTER: They just turned off because she's seen as a nut job.

TODD (on camera): Megan McCain's comment was kind of an off-the-cuff thing in a talk show. John McCain was at a campaign event for Boxer's opponent, Carly Fiorina. The question is, is that kind of campaign tactic effective, the personal attack?

WILSON: Well, the -- I think the thing that's not effective about this particular attack is that it comes from a surrogate and a lot of people aren't going to be going into the polling place on -- you know, in San Francisco or in San Jose or in Sacramento, and saying to themselves, well, John McCain thinks I should vote for Carly Fiorina so I will.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Now First Lady Michelle Obama is more popular than her husband. And if you don't believe the polls, just look on the campaign trail. The same Democrats who may run from her husband are more than happy to embrace her before the adoring crowds.

CNN's senior White House correspondent Ed Henry joins us now with a closer look at the marketing of Michelle Obama.

Ed, the first lady has become pretty much the antithesis of dirty politics.

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes. I mean that's why she has approval rating that's 20 points higher than her husband. I was out on the trail with her Sunday night in Columbus, Ohio. Also last week in Chicago.

And her advisers acknowledge the reason why she's got that stratosphere exists, she has not been involved in politics really much before. Only a little bit of dabbling of it in 2008 but she was even then sort of a reluctant warrior and now as first lady, it's easy for her to pick off some issues like pushing for healthy eating and standing up for military families.

It's sort of mom and apple pies. It's very positive. She doesn't have to take any of the blame or responsibility that her husband has to take for some of the crises in the country right now.

And so once she gets involved as she is more and more in these final weeks, her numbers may come down a little bit. It's just inevitable, her advisers acknowledge in private because she's sort of seen as apolitical. So once she gets involved, that's inevitable, going to drag her into this.

But what they're trying to do to counter that is just make it a very positive message. You don't see her out there, like you saw in Brian Todd's piece, all the candidates sort of slashing each other.

Instead, Mrs. Obama is out there. She's in Connecticut and New York yesterday. She's going to be in California and Washington state next week. Some big Senate battles. And basically, what she's doing is just being very upbeat and positive about her husband's message they think here at the White House is going to be effective.

PHILLIPS: All right. So let's talk about the overall strategy here then for the Dems moving forward.

HENRY: Look at the schedule. Today, Vice President Biden has three stops. Washington, California, Nevada. What's common about that? Three big Senate incumbents in Patty Murray, Barbara Boxer and Harry Reid, the majority leader.

I'm going to be going tomorrow with the president for a big West Coast swing. He's hitting those same western states, then next week, as I mentioned, the first lady's hitting two of the three, Washington and California.

Why? They're basically -- their strategy is to create sort of this firewall. They already know that the House is very much in danger of flipping to the Republicans. They're hoping to keep the Senate in Democratic hands. But if they lose any of those Senate incumbents out west, the Senate could flip, as well.

And so they're trying to desperately save those big Senate Democrats out west. That's sort of their firewall strategy at this point. And what's interesting is when you look at their travels, they're not going to Republican or so-called swing states to try to get some Democratic pickups.

It's all playing defense on Democratic turf. It tells you all you need to know about where the White House is right now -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Ed Henry, thanks so much.

First, a top NATO official claims that Osama bin Laden is living a good life in Pakistan and that Pakistani intelligence agents are actually keeping him safe. Now we're finding out that Washington is giving that country $2 billion to fight terrorists.

We're trying to find out if the investment makes sense.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, take a look at how much money the United States will invest in Pakistan. Up to $2 billion over five years. Money to fight terrorists on its border with Afghanistan.

Well, that money is supposed to buy things like helicopters, weapon systems and technology to intercept communications. Pakistan has said it needs more help from Washington to go after extremists.

Well, here it is. The deal should be sealed this week when Pakistani officials are in D.C.

Now keep in mind, this is going into a country that a top NATO official claims is hiding Osama bin Laden, letting him live like some kind of hero. Pakistan's ambassador to the U.S. says that claim is just simply not true.

Let's talk more about the money. The $2 billion on top of billions of dollars Pakistan is already getting to fight extremists. So more money for a country that might be hiding a terrorist that we so much want to see captured.

Let's talk about this with CNN's Fred Pleitgen is in Islamabad.

So what are some of the things that Pakistan is asking for specifically, Fred?

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's a very interesting question, Kyra, because I talked to a senior Pakistani military official, and this was of course on background because he's not really authorized to talk about all this.

But he had quite a long laundry list of the things that Pakistan is asking for. What we need to know about the Pakistani military is that it's still an army that's very much geared towards a conventional conflict, a conventional war with its archrival India. They say they don't even have the basic tools of counterinsurgency.

So they're asking for training in counterinsurgency. They're asking for gear. Things like body armor, things like night vision goggles. They're asking for protected vehicles. Things like MRAPs.

And of course, also things like helicopters because they've been telling us flat out their helicopters are way too old to operate in a lot of these areas. A lot of them have exceeded their life spans and a lot of them actually right now are on duty trying to help flood victims.

Of course this country is still under water. At least a large part of it -- Kyra?

PHILLIPS: And at the same time -- and we talk so much about this yesterday, Fred. Our Barbara Starr is in Kabul and she talked to a number of sources, and a main NATO source came forward said look, Pakistan is hiding Osama bin Laden. We know he's living in a home. He's protected by the locals there.

So, I think for Americans -- of course, we know Osama bin Laden as the man who orchestrated 9/11 and changed our lives forever. And to think we're giving money to a country that is allegedly protecting the man that America wants to see taken into custody, killed, put behind bars, anything.

FRED PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes. You know, there seems to be a lot of frustration on the part of a lot of US officials, also military officials. And it's not only about bin Laden. I mean, one of the things that the US has been trying to get the Pakistanis to do for a very long time is launch offensive in north Waziristan. That's an area the US says a lot of al Qaeda and the Taliban senior leadership is. That's why you've been seeing so many drone strikes in that area.

Now, the Pakistanis, for their part, have been saying they don't have the resources to do that right now. They say that a lot of their troops are still caught up in helping the flood victims. Also, they've started offenses in other places, as well.

One of the things I think you are seeing with these $2 billion is really a carrot and stick mentality. They're telling the Pakistanis, "All right, you say you can't do this offensive right now because you don't have the resources. Here are the resources. Now, go into north Waziristan and start that offensive." Because the Americans know a lot of the Taliban fighters who are going into Afghanistan and who are a threat to American troops are coming exactly from that place, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Fred Pleitgen in Islamabad. Fred, thanks.

Bank of America restarting foreclosures in 23 states. We're going to tell you what put the foreclosures on hold and what the bank found.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) PHILLIPS: Checking top stories. Bank of America restarting foreclosures in 23 states. It reviewed more than 100,000 cases after complaints that some documents were not being properly vetted.

Former JetBlue flight attendant Stephen Slater due in court this hour. Remember him? How could you forget? His outburst with the passengers and then his cruise down the emergency slide exit from the plane. Slater apparently has been working out a plea bargain.

Police don't plan to charge former NFL start Junior Seau for driving his car off a cliff. It happened hours after he'd been arrested on domestic violence charges. Police say neither drugs nor alcohol were involved in that driving incident.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Two women, from Baghdad's elite class. The other, a servant in her house. They were the closest of friends, sisters at heart, but they went down very different paths. One moved to the United States and later founded an international organization that's helped more than 800,000 families. The other found herself living on charity. And then one day, she decided to join an international group that helps women. Recently, they reunited in Karbala amid tears, hugs. Our Ben Wedeman was there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BEN WEDEMAN, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Zainab Salbi is looking for a long-lost friend in a dusty back street in Karbala, south of Baghdad.

ZAINAB SALBI, FOUNDER, WOMEN FOR WOMEN INTERNATIONAL: Should we enter inside?

WEDEMAN (voice-over): But it's the wrong house.

SALBI: Wrong neighbor. This private?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): Zainab, born and raised in Baghdad, moved to the United States in 1990. This is the right house. It looks like the right woman. Through the mist of 20 long years, recognition dawns.

SALBI: Zainab. Zainab. Zainab, Zainab Salbi.

RADHIYA AJRAD, ZAINAB'S FRIEND: Yes?

(WOMEN CRYING)

WEDEMAN (voice-over): They come from opposite ends of the Iraqi society. Zainab from Baghdad's privileged elite. Her father was the personal pilot of Saddam Hussein. Radhiya from a poor, farming family.

SALBI: They sent her at the age of seven to work as a live-in maid so she can support her family.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): Although Radhiya was a servant in Zainab's home, they grew up together as friends. As sisters, they both say.

Zainab went to America, enrolled in university and, after a trip to Bosnia, became active helping women in war zones, eventually founding a group called Women for Women, which after the US-led invasion, began work in Iraq.

Shortly after Zainab left Iraq, Radhiya married and went on to have six children. Her husband, Sabar (ph), ran a small shop.

AJRAD (through translator): "Remember, you once told me I would become like a hen with a bunch of chicks running behind me," recalls Rahdiya.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): But her life fell apart four years ago when gunmen killed her husband outside their home in Baghdad. She and her children fled, penniless, to Karbala. Surviving on charity, she enrolled in Women for Women in the spring of this year, unaware its founder was Zainab.

Over the years, each had tried but failed to find the other.

ARJAD (through translator): "I lost hope I would ever see my friend again," Rahdiya says.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): Zainab explains how she discovered Rahdiya was still alive.

SALBI: She writes a letter to the sponsor, the American woman who's sponsoring her, telling her, "When I was a child, I worked for this family, and their daughter's name is Zainab Parab (ph)," she's used my father's name, which is different than my family's name. And she describes her life.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): Rahdiya's battered photo album holds images of a vanished past, each picture stirring up long-forgotten memories. Zainab's iPhone full of pictures of friends and family from a completely different time and place.

SALBI: And it's so interesting, because I recognize the younger woman in her. I recognize the memories, that's what's triggering emotion. I don't recognize this woman. So weird.

WEDEMAN (voice-over): So much has changed for both of them, yet so little. Ben Wedeman, CNN, Iraq.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: Just two weeks to go until the election, and a top political analyst is predicting a Democratic blood bath. We'll take a break and talk more about that in our "AM Extra."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(BUSINESS HEADLINES)

PHILLIPS: Well, it's definitely crunch time on the campaign trail. Just two weeks to go until the elections. Here's what's up for grabs. A hundred seats in play in the House. The Republicans need 39 for a majority. On the Senate side, 37 seats in play. The Republicans need 10 for control.

So, what are some predictions about what this means for Democrats? One expert says a "bloodbath" and CNN's John Roberts talked to the nation's top political prognosticators, shall we say.

ROBERTS: It kind of depends, I guess, Kyra, on what your definition is of a bloodbath is. For many people just losing control of the House would be a bloodbath. There are some predictions that Democrats will lose both the House and the Senate, but according to the Rothenberg political report it doesn't look that way.

The first graphic that you put up there, the battle for the House, 39 seats needed for the Republicans to take control currently with 178 seats in Republican hands, 171 vacant. And the Rothenberg Political Report is projecting that they will pick up between 40 and 50 seats.

Here's the way Nathan Gonzales sees the lay of the land.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

NATHAN GONZALES, EDITOR, "ROTHENBERG POLITICAL REPORT": I think the most likely scenario is that Republicans take the House and fall short in the Senate. The Republicans need to essentially win every competitive state on the table. And even though in a wave election we see one party get a lot of those toss up or competitive seats, they usually don't win them all.

So right now Republicans need to win. They need to defeat Senate majority leader Harry Reid that we were just talking about. And they also probably need to win two out of three states. That being Washington, California, and West Virginia. And as Ed talked about just a few minutes ago, the West Coast is one of the firewalls that the Democrats are setting up in their effort to hold the Senate majority.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: All right. What act the impact of the Tea Party on Election Day?

ROBERTS: Well, here's the thing. The Tea Party could give them a victory in a place like Nevada, but the Tea Party could deny them a victory in Delaware, where it looked like they were assured victory if Mike Castle would become the Republican nominee. Now it's increasing looking like that state is going to go to Chris Coons, who's the Democratic nominee. He is running well ahead of Christine O'Donnell.

So while the Tea Party gave them a boost in one area of the country, it could be that the lynchpin for taking control of the Senate, the state of Delaware, now may stay in Democratic hands and deny them an overall majority. But it will certainly be interesting, Kyra, if it plays out the way the Rothenberg Political Report is predicting -- you have a Democrat occupying the White House, control of the House in Republican hands, control of the Senate in Democratic hands. Will they be forced to work together? Or will it be a recipe for political stalemate? Yet to be told that tale.

PHILLIPS: See how it works out. As you and I were talking about earlier this morning, it'll be really hard to get any decision made if we see this type of mix.

ROBERTS: It's hard enough now.

PHILLIPS: It's hard enough already. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

ROBERTS: With the Democrats got control of everything.

PHILLIPS: Exactly. John, thanks.

Cooler heads, calmer voices. But dissension still within the ranks of "The View" after two of the co-hosts walk out in protest. What started it and where it's leading when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Controversial FOX News anchor Bill O'Reilly, still a big talking point on ABC's "The View." Co-host Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar walked off the set last Thursday in protest of what he said about the proposed Islamic cultural center near New York's Ground Zero. On yesterday's show, Barbara Walters, publicly scolded both Behar and Goldberg for the walk-out.

Here's what we went down.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARBARA WALTERS, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": You don't walk out of your own home. You can walk out of somebody else's home. You don't walk out of your own home. He was, as we've said, someone we invited. We are used to Bill O'Reilly. He loves this. He loves to pull your chain. He loves to get you angry. This is just what he wanted.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, after the reprimand both Goldberg and Behar defended their decision to walk off the set.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOY BEHAR, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": On this show, we always speak about standing up to bigotry, so I stood up.

WHOOPI GOLDBERG, CO-HOST, "THE VIEW": I hit my saturation point.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well yesterday was the first time that the view back live from Thursday's segment with O'Reilly.

Let's check our top stories.

More public relations woes for Bank of America already mired in a foreclosure scandal. Well, today, B of A reported a third quarter net loss of $7.3 billion. Yesterday the bank announced it was restarting foreclosures in the 23 states where a court must sign off on the proceedings.

Eleven people have died in the flooding rains of super typhoon Megi. The storm is now over the South China Sea and it threatens to dump more rain in flood-drenched Vietnam and parts of China.

Later this week, the Obama administration will announce an additional $2 billion in an aid package for Pakistan. Purpose -- beef up Pakistan's ability to fight terrorism.

Well, they've come a long way. Latina actresses. And one role they've seemingly broke out of lately, the typecast. How, why, and what it means in the big picture show when we come back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, we're just two weeks from an election that could change the balance of power in Congress. Let's check in with our own Mark Preston. He's checking the political ticker now and the desk there.

So what's crossing at the moment?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Hey, Kyra. You know, there's two storylines in this election. Look, there are a lot of storylines in this election but let's just focus in on the Obama storyline.

Out in California, President Obama appears in a new radio ad for Barbara Boxer. This ad is urging voters to get out and make sure that she gets re-elected to another term. She's being challenged by Carly Fiorina.

Now, back here, closer on the east coast and West Virginia, you have Joe Manchin, who's the governor of West Virginia, a Democrat who's trying to show his independence from Obama. Republicans are trying to tell voters in that state that if Joe Manchin is elected, then he is just going to be a rubber stamp. In fact, Joe Manchin made it clear last night in a debate with his opponent John Raese, the Republican nominee, that in no way, no how will he be a rubber stamp here in Washington for President Obama.

So again, two storylines we're seeing develop as we head into the closing days of this election -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Now, there's also been a lot of talk about the Tea Party in this campaign season, of course. You actually have a column up today, right, that talks about what happens if the movement scores big wins on the 2nd of November? PRESTON: Sure. I do, Kyra. And you know what, it's one of these interesting thing where is the Tea Party had so much influence in the primary process. They've knocked out incumbents such as Bob Bennett and Lisa Murkowski. They've also been able to drive the likes of Arlen Specter out of the Republican Party, Charlie Crist out of the Republican Party.

But what happens if they win? Well, if they win, Kyra, they're going to be on Capitol Hill and they are going to have an incredible amount of influence, especially if they come in big numbers. Up to eight Tea Party candidates could get elected in the Senate. And if that's the case, then you're going to see these policies become more conservative. There's more of a shift to the right. And if that happens, you're probably going to see more gridlock on Capitol Hill because they're not going to want to move along with President Obama or at least capitulate to some of his demands, especially as he heads into his own re-election in 2012 -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Mark, thanks.

And we're going to have your next political update in just about an hour. And, of course, a reminder, you can always go to our web site if you aren't at the tube, CNNPolitics.com.

CNN's newest prime time program "PARKER/SPITZER" goes behind the headlines, bringing you the stories that you haven't heard. And last night they welcomed Fred Davis, Republican ad maker. He's the guy behind the Christine O'Donnell ad "I'm not a witch."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRED DAVIS, REPUBLICAN AD MAKER: The idea was very simple. She was the butt of most national jokes and I found her -- I had dinner with her one night and filmed her the next day. And that was the only time I had to get to know her. So all I knew was what the voters knew. And that's what they saw on "Saturday Night Live" and "The Today Show" and "Tonight Show," and all the jokes.

And I thought it was important and Christine thought it was important to draw a line in the sand and say, OK, that was before, this is after. Now let's move on to what's really important to people in Delaware, which had very little to do with her being a witch or not.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And for fresh angles on the news of the day, don't miss CNN's "PARKER/SPITZER" tonight 8:00 p.m. Eastern on CNN.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Yale University. Five presidents have gone there, actors, scholars, leaders. Its global reputation speaks for itself which makes this fraternity pledge ritual on the campus all the more shocking.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) STUDENTS: Yes. Yes we can. Yes we (EXPLETIVE DELETED). No means yes. Yes we (EXPLETIVE DELETED) --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: No means yes and you can look online if you want to know what the bleeped word is. I'm definitely not going to say it. And get this. That chant was one of the more g-rated ones.

Pledges of the Delta Kappa Epsilon Fraternity were shouting this stuff in an area of campus where freshmen women live. Just imagine being an 18-year-old young woman in a new place and hearing that from the room at night. Imagine your daughter hearing that; hearing a gang of young men moving around in the dark chanting about rape in an area that's supposed to be a safe home away from home. Not exactly Ivy League behavior, is it?

It's morally irresponsible. It's gross. It's creepy and not funny at all even though these guys must have thought it was. In this day and age, it's caveman behavior.

To the national fraternity's credit, tough, it has told the Yale Chapter to stop all the pledge activities for now and the school has already held a campus forum to talk about Yale's sexual climate.

A couple of years ago, pledges from another frat went to the women center and held up a sign that said, "We Love Yale Sluts" and there was very little punishment. The editor of the Yale's feminist magazine said it best, quote, "Please join us in asking that this time around Yale take action on behalf of its female students. Yale's women have endured enough in this pain. It must cease now."

We definitely want to hear from you on this one. Does the punishment fit the crime? Should Yale come down harder on the Delta Kappa Epsilon and those involved? Tell us what you think.

I'll read your comments in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM. We're back in a moment.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: All right, here's what we're working on in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM beginning with T.J. Holmes in the CNN Express live in Aiken, South Carolina this morning. Hey, T.J.

T.J. HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hello there, Kyra. Exactly what is the formula for a small town surviving an economic downturn? Well, how about the equestrian industry, throw in some nuclear materials, some true southerners and some Yankees who want to play golf? I'll put that all together for you next hour.

JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Josh Levs. Whether its desperation, struggling with the economy or just plain old bad behavior, thieves in the U.S. are ripping off stores left and right. A new report that's out just today shows that's it's costing every American family. I will show you what's being stolen and what's being done about it at the top of the hour.

STEPHANIE ELAM, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: I'm Stephanie Elam in New York. Have you ever wondered what your deep ancestry looks like, where you're from? I did. So I took three different DNA tests to see what they found out. I'll tell you what found and I'll tell you if it's worth taking many more than one test. Kyra, that's coming up in the next hour.

PHILLIPS: And I saw who you're related to. I can't wait to talk more about that. Thanks guys, we're going to see you in just a few minutes.

And if you've gone to a lot of movies this year, you may have noticed that a lot of Latina actresses are playing key roles. And if you haven't noticed, well, that's the point of this next story. Hispanic groups say that something remarkable has happened to those parts, places, pretty much a nonfactor.

CNN's Kareen Wynter explains.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Jessica Alba in "Valentine's Day."

JESSICA ALBA, ACTRESS: Checking in for two?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ok.

ALBA: I mean one in a dog.

WYNTER: Eva Mendez in "The Other Guys" and Salma Hayek in "Grown Ups".

SALMA HAYEK, ACTRESS: He's so cute.

WYNTER: All Latinas, all movie actresses, all a part of a rising trend of Hispanic actresses taking on roles where their race is not central to the characters they play. Alba played Ashton Kutcher's girlfriend in "Valentine's Day", Mendez was Will Ferrell's wife in the "Other Guys", and Hayek was Adam Sandler's significant other in "Grown Ups". Movie Web site, Fandango.com recently highlighted this trend.

ELISA OSEGUEDA, ASSOCIATE EDITOR, Fandango.com: The big news year in Hollywood is that Hispanic actresses are finally getting the significant roles they've been looking for. And we started the year really strong with Puerto Rican star, Jennifer Lopez in "The Backup Plan." Zoe Saldana, who many are so surprised when they found out that she is half Puerto Rican and half Dominican -- she's came out in two movies this year, "The Losers" and "The Takers." We had America Ferrera in "Our Family Wedding". Cuban actress Eva Mendez in "The Other Guys" and the list goes on.

WYNTER: And it has nothing do with their ethnicity adds Fandango.com columnist, Elisa Osegueda.

OSEGUEDA: The fact that they're Hispanic is so secondary to their character and that's a big kind of risky in Hollywood.

WYNTER: Osegueda said that changes are welcome since it wasn't too long ago that Latinas mainly played maids in countless films.

OSEGUEDA: You had Elizabeth Pena in "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" who played, you know the sassy maid and servant. You had Lupe Hontiveros, who's been in Hollywood for years, over 20 years, and she's always played that maid that delivers those crazy punch lines. And we're seeing less of that now, we're seeing more Hispanic actresses with more meatier roles.

WYNTER: And perhaps the surge in Latino moviegoers fueled this trend. According to the Motion Picture Association of America, although whites make up the majority of the American population moviegoers and ticket sales, it's actually Hispanics who are more likely to go to the movies.

In fact, 37 million Hispanic moviegoers purchased 300 million movie tickets in 2009, that's the highest rate of any ethnic group. And the trend can be seen beyond the big screen with regards to television. Just look at the roles played by America Ferrera in "Ugly Betty" and Eva Longoria in "Desperate Housewives".

AMERICA FERERRA, ACTRESS: Yes, that's what I'm talking about.

EVA LONGORIA, ACTRESS: You're right. This is so big.

OSEGUEDA: There is an audience there, and I think studios are finally tapping into that, and they're realizing that Hispanic actresses can pull in an audience.

WYNTER: And at the same time bridge the gap that so-long plagued Latina stars who are starting to earn their place in the spotlight.

Kareen Wynter, CNN, Hollywood.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PHILLIPS: As we were preparing for this segment, we were kicking around a lot of the Latino typecasts of yesteryear. And it was pretty inescapable. The Hispanic actor always and inevitably sufficing the ethnic character: Desi Arnaz, Cuban band leader; Eric Estrada as a Mexican-American biker known as "Punch" in Chips; and then there was "Fantasy Island", Ricardo Montalban. Remember that?

And then who could forget Julio Fuentes, the Puerto Rican junk man with the good fortune of moving next door to Fred Sanford.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hey, senior. You and el gode (ph), vamoose, right away. Do you dig?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm sorry. I don't understand.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's nothing Julio. (END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: All right. We want to talk more about this with Jorge Cano-Moreno. He is the co-founder and publisher of Urban Latino Magazine. You see that clip Jorge? Boy, times have changed from the mid-'70s primetime television. There's no way that would fly today, would it?

JORGE CANO-MORENO, CO-FOUNDER & PUBLISHER, URBAN LATINO MAGAZINE: No definitely not. I think that the days of "Sanford and Son" and playing the maid and playing the nanny are long gone.

I think that we have to give -- acknowledge people like Rita Moreno, who pioneered serious actresses in Hollywood with "West Side Story". And she's the first Latina to win both a Grammy, Academy award and a Tony. I think that there's been a lot of Latina actresses that have paved the way.

And I think it's a good time right now for Latinas and Latinos in Hollywood to just play roles that are good, that are meaty, that can give them a balance, and be able to talk about their background and things that they have been able to experience and bring that to a role.

I think it's a wonderful time in Hollywood.

PHILLIPS: And we'll talk about -- more about that in just a second. But actually said, you started your magazine in 1994. With regard to breaking stereotypes and lifting up the Latino image, how much progress have you been able to see since you started a very hip magazine, a very positive magazine for Latinos until now?

CANO-MORENO: One of the great stories I like to tell is Rosario Dawson. We met her when she was just starting off right out of "Kids". And we were able to kind of document her career from just an abstract actress in an independent film to one of the biggest actresses in Hollywood. We were also able to -- we also always try to find that new face, that new talent that's emerging, like America Ferrera, like Daniel Ramirez.

So I think that we try to be the first ones to bring some kind of attention to talent that we see out there. One of the great talents that's just bubbling is an actress called Melanie Diaz, who was in like four Sundance Films and is just someone that is a great actress, who plays really cool, funky roles. And we're seeing more and more of those opportunities for Latina actresses.

PHILLIPS: Interesting, you mention America Ferrera, and I remember her as the star of "Ugly Betty" and I know that she's one of your favorites. And she's now starring in this movie that's getting a lot of hype called "The Dry Land". Why do you see her as a good example now of positive images for Latinas?

CANO-MORENO: Because I think that the body type. She's not the pretty, sexy actress like J-Lo, but she's a great actress. I think that film companies like My Entertainment putting out a film like "Dry Land" where America gets to showcase her real acting versatility is a great way to show that Latina actresses -- first of all they are actresses, they just happen to be Latina, and the great thing about having that dual bi-cultural experience is that they can play and pull from so many different places to do and to bring a role to life.

PHILLIPS: You know what's interesting as I'm looking at "Dry Land," and her character is so strong. They could have easily cast a white woman in this role. But kind of taking a look back at -- you know, we kind of laughed about "Sanford and Son," but if you think of "I Love Lucy" with Desi Arnaz, I mean he was a great musician and a band leader. Eric Estrada was a total stud in "Chips". I mean there were positive roles for Latino men, at least, years back.

CANO-MORENO: Yes, and one of the things that a lot of people don't realize is that Desi Arnaz actually owned the rights to his show. You see "I Love Lucy" now and his great grandchildren, I believe his grandchildren are still seeing residual payments from that show. So he was one of the first Latinos to really own the rights to his show.

That's huge back in the '40s and '50s when those shows came out. So I think that -- I think now is a great time. I think that there's a challenge out to Hollywood that scripts, regardless of who the characters could be should give Latina actresses a chance to play those roles. And not only that, but see that Latinos come in all colors. Like Zoe Saldana, whose a black Latina can play black characters, can play Latin characters, can play just great characters. And she happened to be a co-star in the biggest film ever, which was "Avatar." So I think that Hollywood should feel comfortable that we buy a lot of tickets, that we have a lot of great talent and that we actually come out to the movies and support the films.

PHILLIPS: Jorge Cano-Moreno, thanks so much for your time today.

CANO-MORENO: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: You bet.