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President Obama Stumps for Dems in West; Battle for Senate Seat in Illinois; Buffalo Gospel Singer Claimed Faith Healing Made Her Walk Again; Cast of "Modern Family" Shares Their Inspirations; Stocks Expected to Start High After Good Earnings Reports From Honeywell, Verizon, American Express; Afghan Boys Working to Support Family; Customer Turns Tables on Robber
Aired October 22, 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: Good morning, you guys. Well, take a look at what we're talking about for the next couple of hours.
Your pockets for one. You're going to have to dig deeper for stuff that you just can't live without. Groceries.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Like a WWE. I gave him my help to go ahead first into the floor with his head and shoulders.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: A teen thief picked the absolute wrong fast food place to rob. He had no idea that this customer, busy munching on a sandwich, would turn into a some kind of super hero.
And if there were a statue of Shaquille O'Neil at Harvard, this is what it would look like. Shaq shows Boston what a poser he is.
And a woman puts her feet on the ground and walks toward her parents. Why is this such a big deal? Because she's been in a wheelchair for 23 years. Faith or fate? We want to hear from you today.
Good morning, everybody. We begin with the Democrats fighting to keep control in Congress. Republicans going all out to grab the majority. Now with just 11 days until the midterm election, the pressure is on both parties. All 435 House seats and 37 Senate names on the ballot.
And CNN is covering all the races for you.
President Obama is out west stumping for two big-name senators with big targets on their backs. And White House aides are finally revealing where the president will make a final push in the last weekend of campaigning.
Ed Henry traveling with the president joining us now from -- Burlingame, California.
So, Ed, what's the message as he tries to save these Democratic incumbents?
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's all really about the president trying to close that so-called enthusiasm gap. We've heard so much about how the Republicans are going to be more motivated to get out to the polls.
That they're angry, they're frustrated with the president's policies. He's pushing back on that and what I have seen over the last couple of days has been very interesting. As he's really turning out his people.
Much larger rallies, Portland, Seattle, the last couple of days than we've seen much earlier in the campaign and that's all about trying to make sure that two things happen. That people get to the polls on November 2nd but also that others actually get their votes in earlier.
A lot of these western states actually have that early voting. The president wants to make sure they turn out. In terms of message, it's all about trying to show a contrast with the Republicans while also acknowledging that maybe he's made some mistakes along the way. Take a listen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: I take some responsibility for that. I mean, our attitude was to get the policy right and we did not always think about making sure we were advertising properly what was going on.
But I think that we have the opportunity now that the economy is more stabilized to be as clear as possible with folks about what we've done.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
HENRY: Now, the Republicans have jumped all over that president saying that maybe if he had just advertised better on the stimulus is what he was talking that maybe things would have gone better.
They're saying, look, it is really all about his leadership and his policies. It's not about the advertising of these policies and that this is a referendum on his leadership, this election.
White House rejecting that notion. Their bottom line out here in the west and all around the country is that they say it's not a referendum election. It's a choice election and that the Republicans are elected, they're going to go backwards, in the president's words, on health care reform, Wall Street reform, et cetera.
That's really where the battle is drawn -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Well, and the president has another battle today. I mean he's out stumping for Barbara Boxer and Harry Reid.
HENRY: Yes. And these are two incumbents that obviously Democrats wish they had wrapped this up long ago. I'm here in California where Barbara Boxer -- you know, this is a state the president won handily. Then on to Nevada and Harry Reid, the Senate majority leader.
You know, Democrats had hoped that he wouldn't be struggling this badly. But here it is. We're getting new details about what the president is going to do in the final days. There'll be more defense beyond just today's California and Vegas final weekend before the election.
He's going to go to Pennsylvania, a state he won a couple of years ago. Democrats struggling there. He's also going to be going to his home of Chicago. Big Senate race there. His old Senate seat still up for grabs.
A dramatic example of how much Democrats are playing defense that on a final weekend of this campaign the president's going to have to go to his home of Chicago just to try to bail Democrats out -- Kyra.
HENRY: Ed Henry, we'll be tracking everything campaign news, that's for sure.
The president's return home next weekend shows how critical the battle is for his old Senate seat.
CNN congressional correspondent Brianna Keilar joining us from Chicago.
So, Brianna, this race has gotten pretty saucy. A mob banker versus a serial fibber?
BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. To hear what Democrats are saying, they are -- you know, aiming at the Republican candidate here calling him a serial liar. And then Republicans, that's exactly what they're calling the Democratic candidate Alexi Giannoulias, a mob banker. And you're seeing that even in ads that feature Tony Soprano, one does.
So Republicans really taking aim at the Democrat over years that he spent as an executive in his family's bank, and this was a bank that made a loan to a convicted bookie and then this bank actually failed and was seized by regulators earlier this year.
Alexi Giannoulias hitting back on any sort of suggestion of wrongdoing here, though, Kyra.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ALEXI GIANNOULIAS (D), ILLINOIS SENATE CANDIDATE: I say that's offensive, hurtful, wrong, inaccurate and shameful. No one has ever, ever even suggested the bank has ever done illegal, illicit or improper and I'm very, very proud -- very proud of the business that my father started, a community bank that my father started 30 years ago.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: Now, Brianna, for the Republican in the race, the misstatements that he made about his military service, sort of ironic considering the military service is usually an asset to a candidate.
KEILAR: No, that's exactly right. We're talking about five-term Republican Congressman Mark Kirk, and he spent 21 years as a Naval intelligence officer. This normally would be an asset. You're right, Kyra.
But in the past years he's made statements saying that he was shot at in Iraq, that he served in the Gulf War. That he received the Naval office -- or the Navy's Intelligence Officer of the Year award, and these things are not true. So I asked him that -- all of these statements. Here's what he said.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: Were you careless in your remarks?
MARK KIRK (R), ILLINOIS SENATE CANDIDATE: Absolutely. And you correct that. That's right. And I misstated parts of my military record but in the Navy we're trained to take responsibility and be accountable for your people, for your unit and for your mission.
I am accountable.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
KEILAR: And Kyra, here's why we're watching this race so closely. Because this is one of three Senate races where whoever wins doesn't have to wait until the new Congress. They don't have to wait until January because they are replacing somebody who is appointed to fill a vacancy. They could take the seat soon after the November 2nd election.
If the Republican wins here, really, you're looking at something to affect President Obama's agenda almost immediately. Of course, that's probably why he's here campaigning next weekend trying to shore this up for Democrats -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Brianna Keilar, thanks.
Those suspicious powder and drawings of two swastikas were sent to an Arizona congressman's office. Now the FBI is on the case.
The powdery substance and drawings were found inside an envelope at the Tucson office Representative Raul Grijalva. The fire department confirmed the powder was toxic.
It's the third security issue at the district offices for him this year.
All right. A pretty severe storms in the plains today. Reynolds Wolf all over it for us.
Good morning. (WEATHER REPORT)
REYNOLDS: Let's send it back to you.
PHILLIPS: Reynolds, thanks.
Well, coming up next, we're going to talk about faith healing. I bet your skepticism alarm just went off. But a woman who spent about 23 years in a wheelchair has walked up to her parent's porch to actually give them a hug.
She claims that a faith healing put her feet on the ground again. We're going to get your input on this one and tell you what the critics are saying.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: A man, a masterpiece and some music make up our look at the news happening across country. Let's start with the man, Shaq. Shaquille O'Neil. The new Boston Celtic with sometime on his hands obviously.
He went to Harvard Square and just kind of sat there for 40 minutes. He did a statue impression and it did pretty well. He'd sent out a tweet just beforehand and then a handful of followers turned into a crowd of hundreds.
Now let's talk about the masterpiece near Buffalo, New York. A possible Michelangelo painting that sat behind the family's couch for decades. An Italian art historian thinks it might genuine and could be worth $300 million.
The painting has been in Martin Kober's family for more than a century and he didn't even realized until recently that he might have a priceless piece.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARTIN KOBER, PAINTING OWNER: I did bounce a tennis ball off of it more than a few times as an upset child for various reasons.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: And that's the country band Lady Antebellum. In case you didn't know. They actually played a free gig at a gas station outside Milwaukee. Why? Well they played that same place three years ago and at 5:30 in the morning to a crowd of 15 people. Before anyone knew they were there they decided to go back to that site because they called it one of their worst gigs ever.
They just wanted to give back. A lot more than 15 people showed up, by the way. And they didn't have to wake up so early.
All right. Let's talk about faith healing. One thing is certain. Comedians have gotten a lot of mileage out of it through the years. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Rid this man of these headache demons, of these migraine demons. Heal this man. Amen.
UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: Amen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hallelujah. Oh good god and Miss Molly. How do you feel, son?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My headache is gone but --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: God bless him.
(END OF VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Yes, that's from "Fletch Lives." Chevy Chase poking fun at faith healers. Maybe this is how you view it. It's fraud healing. You know, the stuff of parody.
If you do, just suspend your disbelief for a couple of minutes and watch this story from Lorey Schultz of WIVB in Buffalo. It's about a family getting ready to see their daughter walk for the first time in 23 years.
And I want to say we did ask the Shepherd Center -- that's a spinal cord injury rehabilitation hospital here in Atlanta -- about this. And they said right off the bat that it seems like a hoax.
So you take a look at this and then we want you to weigh in.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
AMELIA ROMAN, DELIA'S MOTHER: Bless me, Lord.
LOREY SCHULTZ, WIVB, BUFFALO (voice-over): Amelia Roman has waited 23 years for this moment. With family and friends by her side, was about to see her daughter, Delia, walking home.
SCHULTZ: Did you pray every day for Delia?
ROMAN: Every single day.
SCHUTLTZ (voice-over): Others were just as excited.
MILAGROS FANCHER, FRIEND: I can't wait. I cannot wait to see what God was able to do.
CASIMIRO RODRIGUEZ, FRIEND: Our faith has always been that God does miraculous things.
SCHULTZ (voice-over): For more than two decades, gospel singer Delia Roman-Knox was the woman in the wheelchair. At 25, she was paralyzed from the waist down after being hit by a drunk driver.
DELIA ROMAN KNOX, GOSPEL SINGER: I'm feeling your hands. SCHULTZ (voice-over): Now the Buffalo native, who resides in Alabama, can be seen all over YouTube. Eight weeks ago at a Christian revival, she shocked everyone when she got out of her wheelchair and walked.
Since then, she couldn't wait to return to western New York to see her parents. Our camera rolled as she arrived and took her first steps outside the family home.
(CROWD CHEERING)
KNOX: That was one of my things, I just wanted to walk up the stairs and see my mom and my dad. I just thank God that they're alive to see this.
SCHULTZ (voice-over): Delia claims she had no idea that on the night she was wheeled into the revival, she would leave on two feet.
KNOX: I would stay away from revivals because I've been pulled, plopped and dropped. This time, I walked. I didn't sing. I didn't talk. I just walked.
SCHULTZ (voice-over): Miracle?
KNOX: All I know is once I couldn't walk, and now I walk.
ROMAN: My house is as a house of miracle. I tell you that it's all -- it's only one way. The Lord.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Now, again, there's been no medical explanation of why she's able to walk now. Delia Knox didn't want to talk about what her doctor or physical therapist think, and she wouldn't go into detail about the medical condition that caused the paralysis. One skeptic says that maybe she could walk but just didn't before that revival.
All right. We want you to weigh in now. What do you think? Faith or fraud? And do you have any miracle stories that you want to share with us? Leave your comments on my blog, cnn.com/kyra. I'll read some of them next hour.
Still ahead, the joys of parenting, and the perils of trying to remain sane in today's "Modern Family."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PHIL DUNPHY: Things with your mom got pretty intense down there, huh? All like, East Coast-West Coast. You feeling me?
Act like a parent. Talk like a peer. I call it "peer-anting." I learned it from my own dad, who used to walk into my room and say, "What's up, Sweathog?"
(END VIDEO CLIP) PHILLIPS: The show is the darling of the critics, and it's a huge hit with viewers. Hear what the star have to say about the big heart and laugh-out-loud humor of "Modern Family," coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Well, the family sitcom has been around ever since that first tiny Filco TV flickered to life, but over the decades, the formula got old and stale and viewers just turned away. That is, until last year's debut of "Modern Family." The comedy has succeeded by trying something truly outrageous. Just being honest.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP - "Modern Family)
HALEY DUNPHY: Mom just doesn't trust me, and it's not fair.
PHIL DUNPHY: She trusts you. It's just that weird stuff happens at concerts. Boys get urges.
HALEY: Ew. Dad, is there something you want?
PHIL: Yes, there is. To connect with this girl right here. Now, come on. Pretend I'm not your dad. We're just a couple of friends kicking it in a juice bar.
HALEY: What's a juice bar?
PHIL: OK, a malt shop, whatever.
HALEY: Dad, I don't --
PHIL: No. Who's Dad? Who's Dad? I'm Marcus from biology. Hey, Haley. How's it going with you and Dylan? Has he tried anything inappropriate with you? Girl?
(PHONE RINGS)
HALEY: Hey.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE (via telephone): What are you doing?
HALEY: I don't know, nothing. Just talking to some dork I met in a malt shop.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Everyday absurdities resonate not only with viewers, but critics, too. The ABC comedy has scored big in the ratings and is one of the big winners of this year's Emmy awards. Tonight, the cast members appear with Larry King and talk about the show's magical mix of humor and heart.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LARRY KING, CNN HOST, "LARRY KING LIVE": Some critics say that you have saved the family sitcom. JESSE TYLER FERGUSON, ACTOR, "MITCHELL": We feel that we have.
(LAUGHTER)
FERGUSON: It was a seed that we planted.
KING: Where did they find you, Sofia?
SOFIA VERGARA, ACTRESS, "GLORIA": I kind of found them. I went to ABC some years ago with an idea of a pilot. And that didn't work out. But they really liked me a lot. So, Mike Ferguson kept trying to find a good role for me until he found "Modern Family." I think it was like -- I think I'm not going to have a better role in my whole life.
KING: I doubt it. Ty, is it hard to play someone who's stupid?
TY BURRELL, ACTOR, "PHIL": Not for me. No.
(LAUGHTER)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Another element of the show that's won praise is the portrayal of a same-sex couple. Gay rights advocates applaud the message that the dynamic between Mitchell and Cam and their adopted daughter is not so different from the traditional family.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KING: Did you base your character on your mother?
FERGUSON: Eric did.
KING: You did?
ERIC STONESTREET, ACTOR, "CAMERON": Yes. That's me. I sort of --
KING: Your mother was like that?
STONESTREET: Well, my mother -- Just in the beginning, when I had to audition for it, it was sort of somewhat of a pitfall of a character to audition for, because there were some broad moments that you had -- I sort of felt like I had to be careful with of going over the top. So, I just grounded it a little bit with how my mother would react to situations.
FERGUSON: Having met his mom, it's kind of spot on.
STONESTREET: She's just real excitable. And --
KING: Give me an example.
STONESTREET: Like when I'm coming home, she'll say, "Well, I've made your favorite cookies, you're going to love them." You know, or, "We're going to go to -- we're going to go out for lunch, and I thought we'd go to a movie a little later."
FERGUSON: Itineraries.
STONESTREET: Yes, itineraries and excitement and passion. And the character's changing and evolving.
KING: Jesse, how do you approach Mitchell.
FERGUSON: He's actually very close to myself. I'm a little less serious in my normal life. But, like, I find that he's very close to who I am.
STONESTREET: We're oddly more like each other off screen. I'm a little probably more uptight than Cameron, for sure. And Jesse --
FERGUSON: Aside from the whole loud shirts, I'm probably closer to Cameron, yes.
STONESTREET: Yes, no.
FERGUSON: Yes.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Larry King's interview with the cast of "Modern Family" airs tonight, 9:00 PM Eastern.
One of the actors from "Modern Family" is also joining Conan O'Brien next month with he unveils his new show on our sister network, TBS. Julie Bowen, who plays Claire Dunphy, will join Coco for the debut week of November 8th. Oscar-winning actor Tom Hanks will also be a guest that week. Actor and comedian Seth Rogen, always -- also a guest, and so will Jon Hamm from the hit show "Mad Men." Conan O'Brien's Los Angeles-based show will air weeknights at 11:00 Eastern.
Terry Kennedy breaks the mold of the professional skatebordier -- skateboarder, rather. And boy, can he ever bust a move at the skate park. But his athletic skills are only a small part of his remarkable story. He's sharing it with us live.
And hold on to your pockets. You're going to have to dig deeper for stuff you just can't live without. Namely groceries. We'll tell you why and how much after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Stocks set to kick off today's session on a high note. Investors cheering positive earnings of from Honeywell, Verizon, and American Express, but the advance could be limited by developments in South Korea.
G-20 leaders meeting today, and currency exchange rates are the hot topics. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner says that developing countries like China are holding its currencies artificially low, and that gives them an unfair advantage when it comes to exporting goods. We're going to be watching the numbers from Wall Street all day. Well, if you've never tried coupon clicking -- clipping, rather, you may want to start, because prices at the grocery store are rising. Several major companies hiking prices on items that you eat every day. Alison Kosik at the New York Stock Exchange with the details. Hey, Alison.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hey, Kyra. It's hiking prices on things that we eat and drink every day. I'm talking about coffee and bread. You know, we all eat bread, we all drink coffee. Most of us do. And something about this topic, got to tell you, we could pick this up this morning, 11 bucks for a pound of this.
Now, sure, this is New York prices. We're not really the average there, but we're real people, too, paying 11 bucks for a pound of coffee. And you're going to see this across the country, too, because a bunch of companies have already announced price hikes.
Peak's Coffee is one of them. Those beans up 8 percent. Folgers, Dunkin Donuts, Millstone prices up nine percent. Even what you eat. Sarah Lee, it says its prices up on bread, deli meat and coffee.
And even if you go out for that coffee, it is really becoming more and more of a luxury. Starbucks has said it's upped the prices on those, quote, "labor intensive drinks" like lattes. And get ready. Just around the corner in a few weeks, General Mills expecting to raise prices on some of its cereals and its baked goods. Talk about luxury. Buying that box of cereal is.
Why is all of this happening? Because we're having higher commodity costs. Things that is go into the finished products like corn, soybeans, coffee beans. Corn goes into cereal. Soybeans obviously making up a lot of our foods, and that's why we're seeing the price hikes going so high, especially. Kyra?
PHILLIPS: Can't companies just absorb some of the costs?
KOSIK: Yes. I mean, actually, Kyra, they have been doing that, but the fact of the matter is they need to pass costs on with these commodity prices. They stay up over the long term.
I want you to take a look at how much prices are up over the long term and why we're seeing the spikes, like coffee up 40 percent over the past year. It actually hit a 13-year high yesterday. What's happening here is there are worries that is we'll have smaller coffee crops out of Brazil. There's also been bad weather in Vietnam. There was lots of rain there and a typhoon. And there are more prices, more products that are heading higher over the long term, as well.
Corn up 40 percent. Corn hit a two-year high this month, and the USDA expecting smaller corn crops next year. That's as demand is high.
And corn really has big implications, Kyra. Corn is used in almost everything that we eat and drink and use. Soda, cereal, glue. Animal feed and ethanol, and one more thing to keep in mind. Good tie here to the New York Stock Exchange. You know, the weather has a lot to do with these higher prices. You know, impacting the crops. A lot of this also is because it's being investor driven, especially with costs on cotton and sugar, two other commodity that is are higher. The Fed expected to pump more money into the economy on November 3rd. Ultimately, that's going to add to inflation, and for investors, these bets on commodity futures is a way to hedge against it.
So, it may not all be supply and demand. A lot of it may be investor driven. That's definitely happening right behind me on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange.
Back to you, Kyra.
PHILLIPS: Alison, thanks.
We can all agree it's been a pretty miserable economy in the last few years, but when it comes to policies and politics, there's very little common ground on who's to blame.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Bush regime had so thoroughly prostituted itself out to corporate interests that the country was just basically being drained off and robbed.
RONALD REAGAN, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Government is not the solution to our problem. Government is the problem.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Two very different views coming to a theater near you. The big screen documentaries take a deeper look at how Washington's decisions affect all of our wallets. The difference in the viewpoints is staggering. CNN's Kareen Wynter breaks it down.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (imitating Barack Obama): I learned in school spreading the wealth is good for everyone.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (imitating Ronald Reagan): Well, I learned from real life that it's not.
KAREEN WYNTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Two documentaries --
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You can't take it with you. So, if you don't share it, if you don't empower someone else, then you're soulless.
WYNTER: Two very different perspectives.
"I Want Your Money" and "Ghetto Physics" square off in theaters and clash in their take on what makes a good economy. Both films offer interviews from their respective sides, but opt for different gimmicks to emphasize the points.
"I Want Your Money" breaks into sequences of animation.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes. Go us.
WYNTER: "Ghetto Physics" uses what directors Will Arnse (ph) and E. Raymond Brown call street language. They say it's effective with viewers.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They start offended and a little upset and a little weird and uncomfortable. By the end, they're some place different.
E. RAYMOND BROWN: When I talk in terms of pimps and hos and when we use that metaphor in the movie, we are actually seeing that's going on from the streets to the White House.
WYNTER: Brown says comparing Pennsylvania Avenue to the ghetto can actually help audiences understand Washington's role in the economic meltdown.
BROWN: Bush regime prostituted itself out to corporate interests that the country was just being drained off and robbed. Then Obama came in, people hoped he would counter it. And what they're finding out is, he's really being prostituted out to the same powers and factions.
WYNTER: The other film has a different view.
REAGAN: Government is not the solution to our problem. Government is the problem.
WYNTER: Michigan GOP Congressman Thad McCotter is in "I Want Your Money." He thinks Ronald Reagan is right.
REP. THAD MCCOTTER (R), MICHIGAN: Money is taken out of the private economy, out of private charity, housed in Washington, and then redistributed as people in a centralized bureaucracy see fit rather than the very people that the ghetto movie is talking about trying to have it in their hands and empower them. You cannot be empowered if you are dependent.
WYNTER: Arnst disagree.
WILL ARNTZ, "GHETTO PHYSICS": When I hear that, it's just wrong. If you look at the Reagan - basically all the Republican administrations, what they do is they spend all the money, they give the tax breaks to the rich and then the rich get richer. The poorer get poorer.
WYNTER: It is a centuries' old debate that both films seem happy to continue.
MCCOTTER: I'm glad that the other guys are putting out their movie. Because when you spark public debate, what you do get to is broadest consensus you can of the American people. WYNTER: The American people can decide which documentary they prefer. Both are in select theaters now.
Kareen Wynter, CNN, Hollywood.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PHILLIPS: Juan Williams fired from NPR but getting a huge raise and contract at Fox. He signed a new multiyear deal with Fox News, where he's become a familiar face as a contributor over the years. National Public Radio fired Williams two days after saying on Fox News' "Bill O'Reilly" show that he gets nervous when he sees people in the Muslim garb on planes.
Now, Williams is firing back about his dismissal. He says, quote, "This is an outrageous violation of journalistic standards and ethics by management that has no use for diversity of opinion, ideas or a diversity of staff. I was the only black male on the air."
The whole thing has kicked off a debate about freedom of speech and whether the firing was justified. NPR says it's a question of policy and even made a snide remark about Williams' feelings between him and his psychiatrist. Listen to what media analysts had to say on "AMERICAN MORNING."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FRANK SENSO, FORMER CNN WASHINGTON BUREAU CHIEF & WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: -- he and NPR were on a collision course and have been for a long time. He knew that. They've documented that. Forget the comments about the psychiatrist, those were unfortunate and wrong.
But fundamentally, NPR says in its publicly published ethics code the following: NPR journalists, quote, "should not participate in shows, electronic forums, or blogs that encourage punditry and speculation rather than fact-based analysis." They're very explicit about this.
As I say, they've been on a collision course for a long time. And just as CNN fired Rick Sanchez when he stepped over the line, they've been uncomfortable with these last comments for Juan Williams stepping over the line for NPR.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: Author Bill McGowan disagrees with NPR's actions.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL MCGOWAN, AUTHOR: Profoundly. I don't think it's any breach of their policy. "O'Reilly" is not just a punditry show. "O'Reilly" does break stories. He has a news content there.
What Juan said was maybe perhaps not as phrased as delicately or diplomatically as it could be, but what he said was not what a lot of people in America say. And if he had said it through that prism instead of saying it through his personal feelings, he'd be fine.
The other thing is, NPR has a lot of people making, you know, opinions. Daniel Schorr for a long time -- I mean, his opinions were obvious. And they let Juan Williams going on for years without doing anything. So, essentially, I think they waive their right to crack the whip on him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
PHILLIPS: As for his position, NPR says that Williams was a news analyst, not a commentator, adding they relied on him to give perspective on the news, not to talk about his opinions. And one last note, the GOP is rallying behind Williams and calling for Congress to pull funding from NPR.
Well, he has ridden his skateboard to success. And he's busted through hardship, barriers, all of that along the way. Heck, even his own family mocked him for trying to be white. Terry Kennedy shares his story of perseverance live right here in the NEWSROOM.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
PHILLIPS: Checking top stories.
A new book says a card with top secret nuclear codes was lost for months during Bill Clinton's presidency. The author is former joint chiefs chairman General Hugh Sheldon. He claims that a Clinton aide lost the card, called the biscuit. It's supposed to be with the president at all times. Sheldon says "we dodged a silver bullet."
The Obama administration's getting ready for a load of secret Iraq war files to go public. Leaked by the WikiLeaks Web site. Site's expected to put some 400,000 documents online this week. This would come about three months after the site released thousands of documents from the Afghan war.
And in New York, a man who spent more than 20 years in prison for a crime DNA showed he didn't commit is getting some payback. $18.5 million for his trouble. A jury awarded it. City of New York plans to appeal it.
Young boys working ten-hour days, giving up their childhood for their families. It's become a way of life in war-torn Afghanistan. Up next, you'll meet them.
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(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE": November 2nd is election day, and Americans will cast our votes and then everything will go back to being exactly the same as it was before.
Here in California, we're having an election to replace our governor. The terminator. He broke. So, we need a new one. And former eBay CEO Meg Whitman is running for governor against attorney general Jerry Brown. Yesterday, Meg Whitman's campaign sent a tweet out to announce that the San Diego's Deputy Sheriffs Association had endorsed her.
Now, this was the tweet. You know, whatever. It says "CA cops get it. Jerry Brown is too soft on crime." But under the message, they included a link of the video of the endorsement, and when you click on the link, this is what you get.
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KIMMEL: A transvestite Korean bass player. By the way, this was 24 hours ago. They haven't fixed it. It still goes to that. Well, you can't expect the former CEO of eBay to know how to work a Web site, can you?
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PHILLIPS: Oh, boy. How do I get from that to our senior political editor Mark Preston in Washington with our political ticker this morning?
Thought I'd try to throw you for a loop there.
MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Kyra, that could have been me playing bass in the video. Who knows?
PHILLIPS: I don't know, I don't want to see you in a tutu, Mark. Thank you very much.
PRESTON: Well, hey that's not very nice.
Crossing "The Ticker" right now, Kyra, President Bush has his new memoir coming out on November 9. He actually has a video up right now, a YouTube video explaining the book.
Some of the things that he talks about is he says he's going to expand upon the 2000 election. Remember that controversial election between him and Al Gore that went to the Supreme Court.
He's going to talk about the September 11th attacks, his decision to go to Iraq; to go to war with Iraq of course, and then of course Hurricane Katrina. This video, you can go to YouTube, you can go to CNNPolitics.com to get to the YouTube video, links right up to it. It's a three-minute video where he kind of expands upon -- it's kind of an interesting because we haven't heard very much from President Bush since he left office.
Here's a fun little item. The "Real Housewives of Washington, D.C.", the "Real Housewives of Orange County"; how about the real Democrats of Washington, D.C.? This is a new ad being put out by a GOP group, a conservative gay group, actually, called GO or Go Proud. They're spending $50,000 to run an ad against three Democrats: specifically Barney Frank, who's an openly gay Democrat from Massachusetts; Nancy Pelosi of course who represents the San Francisco area; and Barbara Boxer, down in California. They say that these three Democrats have been abysmal as legislators here in Washington, D.C.
It's actually another video which is worth a look at. It's kind of interesting, it's going to run again on Lifetime and Bravo for the next week.
And you know, we talk a lot about these 39 seats that Republicans need to pick up in order to take back control of the House of Representatives. Well, one of those is the Indiana 8th District. It's currently held by Representative Brad Ellsworth who is running for Senate.
But right now, Republicans have a very good shot of taking back that seat; again, one of these seats in the Midwest that Democrats are going to have a hard time holding on to. Right now the Democrat's Trent Van Haaften and the Democrat or rather Republican is Larry Bouchon. But you know, even just talking to Democrats in general, this is a seat that they feel like Republicans have an upper edge on -- Kyra.
PHILLIPS: So there's a race in Indiana that you are watching, as well?
PRESTON: Excuse me?
PHILLIPS: There's a race that you're watching in Indiana, correct?
PRESTON: Yes, yes, absolutely. I mean, there's this race right here and then, of course, is that Senate race in Indiana that we're watching, as well. I mean, the whole Midwest is just a -- an area that is going to be problematic for -- for Democrats, even Ohio; again, another state where Democrats will have some problems in.
PHILLIPS: All right. Mark, thanks.
PRESTON: Thanks.
PHILLIPS: We're going to have your next political update in just about an hour. And a reminder for all of the latest political news, you can also go to our Web site, CNNPolitics.com.
Now, CNN's newest primetime program "PARKER SPITZER" is challenging its guests to name your cuts and making the tough decisions on how to balance the federal budget. Well, last night two guests talked about entitlement programs.
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FAREED ZAKARIA, HOST, CNN'S FAREED ZAKARIA GPS: Saving Social Security is trivial. All you have to do is raise the requirement age and means test it and you're there. And the retirement age is absurdly low given -- we started at a time when life expectancy was ten years below it. It is now ten years above it.
SPITZER: Right.
ZAKARIA: That's easy.
GROVER NORQUIST, AMERICANS FOR TAX REFORM DEFICIT: I'm actually more in favor of moving all of our entitlement programs from defined benefit plans which is what we have at precedent to what General Motors had for their pension set-up to define contribution, basically, the 401(k)s. The State of Utah has just done this. And I'm -- I'm big on taking a look at something that's actually happened somewhere.
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PHILLIPS: Check out CNN's "Parker Spitzer" tonight 8:00 p.m. Eastern.
Little boys going to work every day instead of school.
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NASSER AHKMED, (through translator): I never go out to play, he says. I just work here and don't have time for any fun.
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PHILLIPS: It's all too common in Afghanistan -- the story of their stolen childhood next.
And flashback: 48 years ago today President Kennedy with some frightening news.
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JOHN F. KENNEDY, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Good evening, my fellow citizens. This government as promised has maintained the closest surveillance of the Soviet military build-up on the Island of Cuba.
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PHILLIPS: The president announced an air and naval blockade of Cuba after Soviet missile bases were spotted on the island; 13 tense days later the Cuban missile crisis was over. It could have been the closest to the brink of a nuclear war.
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PHILLIPS: Traveling to war-torn Afghanistan now and looking at struggling children, children who have no childhood. They spend hours upon hours just working, no school and no play.
CNN's Barbara Starr reports that some are even the sole wage earners in the family. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BARBARA STARR, CNN PENTAGON CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Meet the boys of the Seroy Melam (ph) mechanics yard. Young boys are sent here to work on cars and trucks by families desperate for income. The boys work ten hours a day six days a week.
Fourteen-year-old Nasser Ahkmed (ph) has worked here for the last year. He agrees to talk to us. His few words convey a young life of dreams and heartbreak.
"I never go out to play, he says. I just work here and don't have time for any fun."
Nasser's boss pays him less than a dollar a day, the only income for a family of five, his father blinded years ago by a Soviet rocket.
Nasser used to go to school but now he just works. He says he dreams of going back to school and becoming a teacher. The boys here do have dreams of another life for themselves.
"I don't want to be a mechanic. I want to be a doctor," says 12- year-old Mohammad Ahsem (ph). His father, Najibullah brings him here to cook lunch for the workers and then he can go to class.
"Knowledge is good, education is good," he says, "but most of these boys are poor and they just have to work."
As Nasser struggles here, he tells us why he wants to be a teacher. He says it's the best way he can serve Afghanistan, but for now, he and his family often go hungry on his small wages.
(on camera): For these boys, life is very hard. They may never get the chance to go to school or play soccer with their friends. And for something as simple as being late for work or not working hard enough during the day, their boss may beat them.
Barbara Starr, CNN, Kabul.
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PHILLIPS: More ahead in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM. Let's check in with our reporters and see what they're working on for us. Josh, let's start with you.
JOSH LEVS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Kyra, the controversial firing of an NPR news analyst after his comments involving Muslims and airplanes. We have all of the details including some criticism from NPR from within NPR. I'll have that at the top of the hour.
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: One of Canada's top military commanders here in Ottawa has pled guilty this week, but it is the shocking details of those crime, double murder, sexual assaults, fetish burglaries, all of that shocking this country. Now we'll have more coming up in the next hour.
PHILLIPS: Thanks, guys.
And Terry Kennedy grew up in a gang-infested neighborhood and turned his skateboard into his vehicle to success. Along the way, he survived a shooting, family tragedies, and stereotypes even from his own family. He joins us live in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM.
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PHILLIPS: A guy takes a bite out of his sandwich and a bite out of crime at his favorite fast food joint. We're thinking that he deserves a free combo meal for throwing down a robber; at least, a free combo meal and maybe one of those big belts from WWE.
Vanessa Medina from WSVN has the story from Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
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RICHARD BARRETT: He's grabbing, scratching, trying to get my arm loose because I had him in a hold like this.
VANESSA MEDINA, WSVN: A battle wound Richard Barrett proudly struts after this.
BARRETT: So I went up and I grabbed the guy and like a WWE, I gave him help to go head first into the floor with his head and shoulders.
MEDINA: But it didn't start that way at that it was Sunday night, Barrett getting grub at his favorite fast food joint.
BARRETT: I was reading my "Miami Herald" and eating my dinner, and I was oblivious to everything that was going on.
MEDINA: The man in the hat running out calling 911, Barrett wondering where did everyone go? The robber storming and forcing manager Steve Lebrun and an employee to the back, they say he pulled the trigger on the revolver. They heard a click.
STEVE LEBRUN, MANAGER, MIAMI SUBS: (INAUDIBLE) grabbed his wrists and took the gun from his hand and just beat the living daylights out of him.
MEDINA: Police say the 16-year-old robber then grabbed this fire extinguisher trying to escape through the drive thru.
BARRETT: They've been burglarized there and they replaced it with Kevlar. So this thing is bouncing off the window, and this kid can't figure out what's going on.
MEDINA: Manager Steve became so angry when he recognized the teen as being a customer there.
LEBRUN: As he jumped (INAUDIBLE) I hit him in the face -- bam, and he has stitches.
