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General Motors Goes Public; Charlie Rangel's Punishment?; GM's IPO Biggest in U.S. History; Terror Trial Verdict; Missing Ohio Woman's Son: Bodies Have Been Found; 33 Miners in Los Angeles

Aired November 18, 2010 - 16:00   ET

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

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: Of course, a reminder to everyone. We will be waiting and watching for that. We will bring the president to you live.

A quick reminder, political update, next one, 30 minutes. You can also get the latest political news. Go to CNNPolitics.com and go to Twitter at @PoliticalTicker.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: You remember the auto bailout, the outrage? Well, it is payback time. GM goes public. And they are paying back billions of dollars to you and me, the taxpayers, but was the auto bailout worth it and what does it mean for your investments?

I'm Brooke Baldwin. The news is now.

REP. CHARLES RANGEL (D), NEW YORK: Was there evidence of corruption? He responded, no, there is no evidence of corruption.

BALDWIN (voice-over): The Ethics Committee did find evidence of guilt. And today his colleagues in the House of Representatives decide the punishment for Congressman Charlie Rangel.

SARAH SHOURD, FORMER PRISONER: Cried and screamed all night long.

BALDWIN: Sarah Shourd,spent over a year in an Iranian prison.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Locked up in a small cell 23 hours a day.

BALDWIN: Her fiance and their friend are still there locked up accused of being spies. In a new movie, she says they are actually peace activists and wants the world to know.

And then rolling out the red carpet across two continents. "CNN Heroes" welcoming the Chilean miners and their heroes to the U.S.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

BALDWIN: Huge news is potentially about to break in Mount Vernon, Ohio. We're awaiting a police news conference and we're hearing from our affiliate out of Columbus, Ohio, WBNS, that according to the son of one of the missing people missing since last week, that the police will be announcing that three bodies have been found, again, three people been missing since midweek last week, that 13- year-old girl, Sarah Maynard, found Sunday bound and gagged in one man's basement, that man, Matthew Hoffman, charged with her kidnapping.

We will bring that to you live here from Ohio here CNN.

Also, we will bring you live President Obama. He's expected to speak any second from the Briefing Room. You can see some people getting set for that. He will be speaking about General Motors. Wolf and I were just talking about that. And he will probably say that bailing out the American auto industry was a good thing 17 months ago. We will bring you back to that picture as soon as we see Mr. Obama in front of that podium.

GM, of course the company that you, the U.S. taxpayer, owned just under 61 percent of, went public today.

Alison Kosik has been studying the markets all day long for us, significant day, of course, in New York.

And, Alison, the nation's biggest IPO started the day 35 bucks a share. Do you we know, where did it end up today?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It ended up at $34.19. Bottom line with this, Brooke, for taxpayers, they did OK. These shares closed about $1.19 higher than the IPO price of $33.

So for traders who bought in at that publicly traded price of $35 that you mentioned, kind of a big bust, because expectations were for the share price to actually jump 10 percent to 20 percent. Still, we can't forget this. There was a huge celebration here at the New York Stock Exchange. Companies execs rang the bell. The bell was followed by a really loud revving of an engine of a 2011 Camaro.

And GM lined up its newest models right outside the NYSE on Wall Street here. They covered the entire front of the building with a big GM sign. Then GM's trading post, it was mobbed with hundreds of people, you know, crowding around this trading post, yelling out trades, something we really don't see anymore.

It's just one of these historic moments, not only because of the size of this IPO, Brooke, but because it represented, you know, this rebirth of an iconic American company -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Sure. Sure. And symbolic with the opening bell and GM now no longer sputtering, very much revving it's Camaro engine.

Alison, before I let you go, how did -- how did the IPO impact markets overall today?

KOSIK: It gave it a huge boost, Brooke. The good feeling surrounding GM helped the bulls really take charge on Wall Street. We finished the session with triple-digit gains for the Dow, up about 173 points.

These GM shares were really in such demand that for a big chunk of the day, 30 percent of all the trades that were coming through here at the NYSE were GM shares. So they really gave a huge boost to this market -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: Alison Kosik, thank you.

Also at this hour, the House Ethics Committee has gone into private session to deliberate the fate of longtime Congressman Charlie Rangel. The House lawyer in charge of Rangel's ethics case now is recommending that Rangel be censured for those 11 violations, including failure to pay all of his taxes. The Ethics Committee will make a recommendation for the full House to then vote on.

Next, an ugly and scary accident. Look at this, parents, SUV vs. school bus this morning in the Saint Louis suburbs. Witnesses say the two smashed into one another head on. Well, there were five kids on the bus. All were hurt, but not seriously. That's what we know right now. The bus driver was injured as well.

The SUV caught fire after the crash and according to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the driver of the vehicle was killed.

Next, we may be one step closer to learning what happened to Natalee Holloway. Investigators could learn as early today whether a jawbone found on an Aruba beach is human, and, if so, DNA tests will be conducted to determine if it matches Holloway's dental records. Natalee Holloway was last seen on the Aruban island five years ago now.

Next: the feds slapping cuffs on two more former employees of Bernie Madoff. They're accused of helping the con man rule the largest investment scam in history. Madoff, you know, currently serving 150 years behind bars, and in case you're keeping count, there are now nine people accused in that historic Ponzi scheme.

Next: Nine skycaps have been arrested at Miami International Airport. But investigators say as many as 50 of them could be involved in a scam to pocket cash from pockets. You know who those skycaps are. They're the ones who carry your bags, your luggage from gate to gate around the airport, right? We trust them, right?

Miami police say the skycaps would take bags from American Airlines passengers, charge them overweight bag fees, and then pocket the money for themselves.

Next:

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is a professional business. I go to get a bite to eat, and this is what I get.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: What he got...

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't find it funny.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: He doesn't find it funny at all. You saw the receipt, printed receipt from a Burger King with a huge expletive. Now two Burger King employees are learning they can't have it their way.

A manager and another worker have been fired over this. The customer says Burger King has offered him vouchers for free food. But he says he's not eating at Burger King again.

CNN has called out to Burger King's corporate office.

Next, a new twist in security at the airport. Every pilot obviously gets a certificate to prove they are able to fly, right? Well, now there's a new push for pilots to include a photo I.D. on those certificates. The government wants the change to prevent someone from faking their way into the cockpit.

Next, you have heard the outrage over the scanners and the pat- downs at the airport. Maybe you yourself have gone through this by now. But if one group got its way, none of this would be necessary. I'm talking -- go with me here, folks -- nudists.

Yes, the American Association for Nude Recreation -- didn't know that existed -- endorsing the full-body scanners. In fact, they are telling you to think of going through a scanner as a virtual skinny dip. Hmm, not so much.

Just a reminder, we're awaiting President Obama, expected to speak live about General Motors. The room is getting busy, probably minutes away. We're monitoring that. We will bring that to you live.

Also, Attorney General Eric Holder said failure is not an option when it comes to prosecuting the 9/11 suspects -- 9/11 suspects. Guess what? A jury just returned acquittals, many, many acquittals on a former Guantanamo detainee for his role in two other terror attacks. So what happens as we move ahead?

That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Today, GM has given its keys back to private investors, and in the process, the U.S. Treasury unloading quite a bit of equity in the company.

To help break down what exactly happened today and what needs to happen going forward, Rick Newman. He is the chief business correspondent for "U.S. News & World Report."

Rick, good to see you. Welcome back to the show. I have your article...

RICK NEWMAN, CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT, "U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT": Hi, Brooke.

BALDWIN: ... you just read wrote or published, your lead line, "Well, well, well, General Motors is back."

So, let's start here, Monday morning quarterbacking, if we can. Was bailing out GM the right thing to do?

(CROSSTALK)

Boy, I mean some people just -- this is almost like asking, do you believe in God or not?

Some people take a rational approach and say, look, this saved hundreds of thousands of jobs, and maybe even a million jobs, for all the pain that would have trickled through the auto industry. So, it's hard to argue against that, especially if taxpayers get their money back.

There are some people who just hate this bailout. I think what GM hopes happens is that they get rid of this stigma of government motors and they start to get back some customers who said, I'm never going to buy a car from the government. They really need some of those customers to come back.

And that's what I think we're hoping to see over the next months and years. This is going to take a while to play out still.

BALDWIN: We are -- just want to remind everyone as we're looking at the live picture from the White House -- waiting for the president. I'm getting the about one-minute warning.

But let me toss this to you, Rick. We have heard from the GM -- oh, just kidding.

There he is, president of the United States.

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Good afternoon.

Today, one of the toughest tales of the recession took another big step towards becoming a success story. General Motors relaunched itself as a public company, cutting the government's stake in the company by nearly half.

What's more, American taxpayers are now positioned to recover more than my administration invested in GM. And that's a very good thing.

Now, last year, we told GM's management and workers that, if they made the tough decisions necessary to make themselves more competitive in the 21st century, decisions requiring real leadership, fresh thinking and also some shared sacrifice, then we would stand by them. And, because they did, the American auto industry, an industry that's been the proud symbol of America's manufacturing might for a century, an industry that helped to build our middle class, is once again on the rise.

Our automakers are in the midst of their strongest period of job growth in more than a decade. Since GM and Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy, the industry has created more than 75,000 new jobs. For the first time in six years, Ford, GM and Chrysler are all operating at a profit. In fact, last week GM announced its best quarter in over 11 years.

And most importantly, American workers are back at the assembly line, manufacturing the high quality, fuel-efficient, American-made cars of tomorrow, capable of going toe to toe with any other manufacturer in the world. Just two years ago, this seemed impossible. In fact, there were plenty of doubters and naysayers who said it couldn't be done, who were prepared to throw in the towel and read the American auto industry last rites. Independent estimates suggested, however, that had we taken that step, had we given up, we would have lost more than one million jobs across all 50 states.

It would have also resulted in economic chaos, devastating communities across the country and costing governments tens of billions in additional social safety net benefits and lost revenue. Now, that wasn't an acceptable option, to throw up our hands and to quit. That's not what we do. As a country of optimistic and determined people who don't give up when times are tough, we do what's necessary to move forward.

So these last two years haven't been easy on anybody. They haven't been without pain or sacrifice as the tough restructuring of GM reminds us. And obviously, we've still got a long road ahead and a lot of work to do rebuild this economy, to put people back to work, to make America more competitive for the future, and to secure the American dream for children and our grandchildren.

But we are finally beginning to see some of these tough decisions that we made in the midst of crisis to pay off, and I'm absolutely confident that we're going to keep on making progress. I believe we're going to get through this tougher and stronger than we were before because just as I have faith in the ability of our auto workers to persevere and succeed, I have faith in the American people to persevere succeed. And I have faith that America's best days and American manufacturing's best days are still ahead of us.

Finally, I just want to embarrass a couple of people. Ron Bloom (ph) and Brian Deets (ph) are key members of the team that helped to engineer this rescue of GM and Chrysler. So had it not been for these two gentlemen, a whole lot of people might be out of work right now. We're very proud of them. And I figured that I'd go ahead -- and you can see they're all looking sheepish -- point them out to you. So thank you very much, everybody.

BALDWIN: That was the president, speaking for just a quick couple of minutes, talking about GM. We know GM officially went public today, and he really was sort of heralding the government and GM for the job they've done, really, in the last 17 months in filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, saying the auto industry, as really a symbol of American's manufacturing might, is on the rise. But he also went on the say, Look, the road is still very much so -- very long ahead.

I want to bring Rick Newman back in, with "U.S. News & World Report." Rick, were you surprised at all with the tone the president took? And let's also break down this long road ahead for GM. How long, how bumpy might it be?

RICK NEWMAN, CHIEF BUS. CORRESPONDENT, "U.S. NEWS & WORLD REPORT":: You know, -- I think I think President Obama can rightfully claim success on this one. And here's one thing the Obama administration did right. I think we know by now that nobody in Washington really wanted to do these bail-outs at all, including the Chrysler bail-out, but they did a good job of managing expectations on this.

I mean, back in 2009, nobody said there would be an IPO by November of 2010. They were very careful to even say whether they thought that the government would get all its money back. So that has allowed them to say this is happening ahead of schedule because they never really created a schedule. So that's one of the reasons it looks like a success right now, Brooke.

But as President Obama pointed out, there's a long way to go. And GM has -- GM has made some important improvements in the quality of its cars and things like that, but -- so now it's getting credit for improvements, but it still needs to get up to the top levels of quality with its products and things like that and stay there. What we've seen from GM in the past is a kind of an ADD with regard to technology projects and things like that. They go off in one direction with a lot of gusto, and then they sort of lose interest and go to something else. So we really need to see a laser-like focus out of this company. We need to see quality keep improving and the products get better and better.

BALDWIN: Rick, stand by for me because I also want to bring in Ed Henry, who was sitting in the room there in the White House, our senior White House correspondent. And Ed, what was your biggest takeaway there?

ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think Robert Gibbs said it even before this briefing, that this was going to be sort of an "I told you so." I mean, they feel very strongly that Republicans were predicting this would be, in their words -- John Boehner and others have said this is on the road to socialism. Instead, they believe this is a dramatic example of government intervention that can work.

The president didn't list all the numbers, but you know, White House aides will tell you that the president saved about 1.4 million jobs. If you had piled a job loss of 1.4 million on top of 9.5 percent unemployment, obviously, this economy would be in far worse shape. Instead, it's a pretty good story for the president to tell. Why is he telling it now? Because he frankly has not gotten a lot of credit, Brooke.

BALDWIN: All right, Ed Henry and Rick Newman, I appreciate you both for coming on, talking about what the president has to say, really touting -- he mentioned it -- 75 (SIC) new jobs created here within -- 75,000 new jobs created here because of this auto bail-out. Gentlemen, thank you both.

Also want to remind you we are still waiting -- this news conference should happen any minute now in Mount Vernon, Ohio. We could be hearing, according to our affiliate, WBNS, good enough to provide us that picture -- we're hearing we could get some news on the three missing people, missing since last week. Have they found a body? Have they not? We should know any moment now. Stay there. Be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: Welcome back to the NEWSROOM. You better believe a lot of eyes were on this case. You had a terror trial. The accused is a man with murder charges from the U.S. embassy bombings in Africa back in 1998. So why all the extra attention on this guy? Well, here's why. It's the first time a suspected terrorist, a Guantanamo detainee, faced a jury in a civilian courtroom. Now, the jury did deliver a verdict. I'm going to get to that in just a second here.

But first, we want to bring our senior legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin. He is certainly watching these historic legal developments with us. And Jeff, just sort of starting at square one here, why is it so important to point out the fact that this trial was held on American soil for all of us to watch before a civilian jury?

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN SENIOR LEGAL ANALYST: Well, one of President Obama's campaign promises was that he was going to shut down the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba and give trials, some sort of trials -- criminal trials, perhaps military tribunals -- to all of those inmates there and end this embarrassment to the country once and for all.

He also announced -- Attorney General holder also announced earlier that Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, who was the ringleader of the 9/11 conspiracy -- that he would be tried in an American courtroom, in a regular federal district court, like federal criminals are tried in all the time. And this was the first time an individual was taken from Guantanamo to the United States for a civilian trial.

BALDWIN: And the verdict -- Jeff, let's be honest, it was a mixed verdict. I mean, you have the jury acquitting Ahmed Ghailani on every charge except one. And yes, it's a very heavy one. But does anyone possibly think that a different income could have come out of this had he faced a military commission, a military tribunal at Guantanamo versus here in the states?

TOOBIN: Well, that's one of the many subjects that's now up for debate as a result of this mixed verdict. You know, I think you summarized it right. He was convicted of a very serious crime. He's going get at least 20 years in prison and maybe life in prison. So the idea that this is some sort of catastrophe, disaster, that this terrorist is going go walking the streets -- that's wrong.

However, this is not a verdict that the government can be very happy about, given how many acquittals, literally hundreds, came in this trial. So the question now is, what do you do with all these 200 or so detainees in Guantanamo? Can you have more civilian trials? Do you have military tribunals for them, which it is easier for the government to get a conviction in, or do you simply delay the process more and let them stay there for years more, if they've been there for years already, with no trial at all?

BALDWIN: Jeff, I want to get to KSM in a minute because, obviously, that's where a lot of this is going, is where the 9/11 co- conspirators will be tried. But first I want to read you -- this is Congressman Peter King, Republican from New York, who, by the way, will also soon to be chair of the House Homeland Security Committee. And here's what he said, calling this "a tragic wake-up call to the Obama administration to immediately abandon its ill-advised plan to try Guantanamo terrorists in federal civilian courts. We must treat them as wartime enemies and try them in military commissions at Guantanamo."

And I imagine those 200-plus family members who lost loved ones back in '98 in the embassy bombings might agree.

TOOBIN: Well, I'm not sure. You know, my experience with the family members -- unfortunately, there are so many of them that they think a lot of different things. There isn't sort of a unanimous view of 9/11 victims or the victims of the Cole or the embassy bombings. I mean, these are all sophisticated people with lots of different views.

You know, Peter King is a Republican who has long-standing views that are different from the Obama administration's. You know, the Obama administration has said, We want to try as many people as possible in civilian courts under the rules of due process of law that we regard as a beacon to the world. I think people can decide for themselves whether this trial...

BALDWIN: Sure, and I bring up...

TOOBIN: ... was a spectacular failure...

BALDWIN: ... Peter King because -- it's just important to show two sides of the story. Obviously, in favor of a civilian courtroom, there are many advantages, as well, including, you know, perhaps less instances (ph) for appeal. But I want to get this final question in for you. As we're talking 9/11, you have KSM, Khalid Shaikh Mohammed. Where might he be tried and when?

TOOBIN: Well, I think the idea that Khalid Shaikh Mohammed will be tried in a federal district court is dead. When Attorney General Holder announced that he would be tried in lower Manhattan, Mayor Bloomberg, the police chief here in New York, Senator Chuck Schumer -- all usually allies of the Obama administration -- said, Forget it, we're not going to allow it, it's not going to happen. So I think that would happen in any community where they tried to bring a civilian trial. So I think Khalid Shaikh Mohammed will get a military commission trial...

BALDWIN: You do.

TOOBIN: ... somewhere. But I mean, it will probably take place, at this rate, at Guantanamo itself. There's a trial facility there. That would certainly be a step back from what Obama promised during the campaign, but his whole Guantanamo policy has been a step back from what he promised in the campaign. Once you're president, national security becomes a lot bigger concern than it looks during the campaign.

BALDWIN: Sure, and that's why this particular trial was so significant moving forward. Jeff Toobin, thank you.

Folks along the coast of Florida getting a huge surprise, huge for a reason. A huge manta ray put on quite a show. You've got to see this. That is ahead.

Also ahead, Jessica Yellin standing by with breaking news form the world of politics. The CNN "Political Ticker" is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: CNN has all your latest political news with The Best Political Team on Television. Jessica Yellin joins us from San Diego. Jessica, you have GOP governors, unemployment and whatever happened to infamous "Mission Impossible" banner?

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN NATIONAL POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes. Okay. I'm going to take those in the order you gave them to me.

BALDWIN: OK!

YELLIN: So, first at the Republican Governors Association, some news being made by a non-governor. Former House speaker Newt Gingrich was here, and he always says something that raises eyebrows. Well, Brooke, since we last spoke, he said he predicted by the year 2013, health care reform will be repealed. He said all the candidates who are campaigning on the Republican side for the 2012 presidential bid will campaign on that issue. And by April of 2013, he predicts there will be a repeal of the health care law. I'm sure Democrats will dismiss that prediction and see it very differently.

The other issues you can imagine here, is about big spending, reining in government and backing this party for a ferocious bid for a 2012 candidate. They haven't decided who it will be, and there are many in this crowd who could be among those on the ticket.

So, that's here in San Diego. In Washington, another issue that relates to this whole skirmish over spending unemployment benefits. Avote to extend those to jobless Americans has failed in the House of Representatives. As you know, periodically this has to be extended, and there's always a battle, frequently a battle because of the cost to government versus the benefits to the unemployed. No doubt this is an issue that will come up and come to a vote yet again in the House and Senate. And then, on a lighter note that "Mission Accomplished" banner. So, remember when then-President Bush landed on the - I think it was the USS Lincoln, declaring major combat operations in Iraq were completed. And yes, "Mission Accomplished." The big banner is something he says he regrets as president.

Where is that going to go? Well, it has a home. The Bush library has it. And will display it. They haven't decided how, but obviously, he's not eliminating his more, I guess, embarrassing moments from his own personal history. He'll include it somehow in that exhibit.

BALDWIN: Of course. Of course. Jessica Yellin from San Diego. Jess, thank you.

Remember you can always get the latest political news. Hop online. CNNpolitics.com. Go to Twitter @politicalticker.

The Chilean miners, we're still talking about them today. Why? They have been on a plane and then another plane, and are in Los Angeles right now. We'll tell you why their 15 minutes fame very much so not up, and why they are being celebrated by us here at CNN. That's ahead.

Plus, Senator Lisa Murkowski claims victory in her write-in campaign, but will she work with Republicans? You know, the party that supported her opponent. Live report from Alaska is next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: The votes are in. And by all appearances, Alaska turn back Palin's choice, really, for U.S. Senate. Said no to Joe Miller, saying yes to write-in candidate Lisa Murkowski.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. LISA MURKOWSKI (R), ALASKA: We did it. We made history.

(APPLAUSE)

MURKOWSKI: Alaskans made history! And doesn't it just feel -- wow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

BALDWIN: Doesn't it feel just wow. Murkowski the incumbent in this race. But Alaska's GOP voters picked newcomer Joe Miller of the Tea Party as the official Republican candidate. Murkowski had to ran as an independent.

And when Murkowski launched her write-in campaign, history not so much on her side. Only one other write-in candidate landed a Senate win way back. 1954. That was Strom Thurmond. So, one of the questions now, one of many perhaps, is will Lisa Murkowski stand with the Senate Republicans or might she have an axe to grind? Let's bring in Matt Felling. He is an anchor with the Anchorage TV station KTVA. Joins me by phone. And Matt, I understand we had to flip-flop the time around where you and I could chat because you had a pretty important chat with Miss Murkowski herself. Pretty huge win for her. What did she have to say?

MATT FELLING, KTVA-TV ANCHOR: Brooke, Brooke, big time apologies. I'm sorry -

BALDWIN: Forgiven.

FELLING: -- with the incumbents.

You know, God bless Alaska politics. Normally, in most races you have a final tally, ding, and then you have a concession phone call, whether or not it's good natured or begrudgingly or just out of habit. You do that. And then you have the gracious victory speech.

Well, we decided to put the cart before the horse here. Senator Murkowski, we don't have a certification. We don't have a concession. Last night, she just got in front of Alaska and declared victory. And yes, the math is there, but it's a very curious turn of events in a race that's been full of firsts up here.

BALDWIN: Give me a little something. What did she say to you in your back-and-forth with her? Got to give me something.

FELLING: Absolutely. No, every week, every other week I sit down with our D.C. delegation here, and I saw a different Lisa Murkowski sitting across from me today. I asked her, listen, you have been stamping yourself as the middle-of-the-road candidate. Give us something that we can look to you to do to actually follow through on that.

And Lisa Murkowski, I never heard her bring up Tom Harkin of Iowa's name. But she talked about how excited she was to work on a child nutrition bill with her good friend, a Democrat from Iowa, Tom Harkin.

And then I actually pursued the "don't-ask, don't-tell"vote because that's something that she's been very reluctant to talk about because she wanted to hear from the troops and she wanted to kick the can down the road. And then today she said listen, there's leaks out of this poll inside the Pentagon saying the troops are fine with it being repealed and, you know, we're a different sort of warfare. There aren't trenches. There aren't fox holes anymore. I think this is something that I would not vote against a bill that had that repeal in it, and that's honestly the first time she's come out swinging on that topic, too. So there's a much different tone --

BALDWIN: Different tone.

FELLING: -- with regards to her reaching across. She had some strong words about Senator Jim DeMint. She said he should take care of South Carolina. We don't need him poking around in Alaskan politics. BALDWIN: Huh, how about that? We can't though, Matt, talk about Lisa Murkowski without talking about Joe Miller. I was reading "The Alaska Dispatch" today. It doesn't sound like he's a man willing to give up. In fact, the Dispatch is reporting the spokesman hinted at election fraud in a press release just before Murkowski's victory speech last night.

So, what is his camp saying, what sort of litigious action should we expect?

FELLING: Oh, litigious. Big SAT word.

Well, here we are -- he's pushing this number he's 2,000 votes behind. And that's the uncontested not even questioned vote total where Murkowski is ahead of him. But then there's and entire other 8,000 votes that his camp challenged that was overruled. So, depending on whose math, whose shoulder you're overlooking it's either 2,000 or 10,000. But either way he's behind.

They are looking at voter fraud. They've been looking at curious ballots that have similar handwriting in different precincts down in Cordova, Alaska, which is down on the panhandle - or south central Alaska. And what they are looking at is different examples, different anecdotes but he's losing traction by the hour.

Just yesterday, the Alaska Republican Party which really championed him - Randy Reedrick (ph), the chairman up here who they had terse words in the past, they were backing him until yesterday when they said, listen, Mr. Miller should do the right thing. He should just back away --

BALDWIN: He should back away.

FELLING: Absolutely.

BALDWIN: Not quite backing away just yet.

Matt Felling, I know you have a day job up there in Alaska. But we thank you, as always, for hopping on the phone and talking to us here at CNN. Matt, thank you.

FELLING: Brooke, our days are very short. So thank you very much for sharing some.

BALDWIN: Thanks.

Coming up next, that giant mantaray I promised you. We'll deliver. The thing can reach across 17 feet. You'll see the video. That's coming up next.

Plus for the most part, fake Santa are usually pretty big guys, right? But there's one who couldn't quite live up to those expectations. You can't miss this. I promise this is good stuff. Stay there.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

BALDWIN: You know at some point most of us had to work with someone we just didn't like. Of course not me. Not me right now. Right? But you just kind of have to move forward, or grin and bear it.

Well, one member of parliament in Argentina decided to take matters, you could say, ,into her own hands. You've got to see this.

Emotions, look, we know can run kind of high in politics. We've seen our fair share of heated debates.

Has she done it yet? He's shaking his finger. She's looking at him. Look at the lady in the purple.

You think you get tugged here in America. Well, pow! She tags him on the cheek. This is a session of parliament in Buenos Aires.

I guess she never learned to keep her hands to herself. Bam! This is kind of fun to watch.

All right. Next, beachgoers in Florida definitely in for a surprise. They spotted a giant manta ray near Singer Island. WPTV got its chopper out just in time to catch this thing.

So, it's about 17 feet wide. I was asking the guy in the control room, "What's 17 feet wide?" I was thinking maybe two car lengths.

Angie Massey (ph), my EP, gets in my ear and says, "Two Shaquille O'Neals." So, if you know Shaq, now you know.

Next, Santa apparently had a little bit too much to drink and couldn't quite make to it the bathroom. Talk about bad timing, Mr. Claus.

A horrified couple knocks him down. There he goes. Down goes Santa. Takes a run for it.

Needless to say, that is one Santa who's making the naughty list.

Wolf Blitzer, he's coming up next with a look at President Obama's busy day, which includes talk of nuclear stockpiles.

Stay here.

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BALDWIN: Before we get to Wolf Blitzer, I want to remind you that we're still waiting for this news conference to happen in Mount Vernon, Ohio. We were told this thing was supposed to get going, gosh, probably 45 minutes ago. We're still waiting.

Again, this is pertaining to the three missing people. You're looking at all four because the gal on the far right, she's 13-year- old Sarah Maynard. And thank goodness she was found. She was found bound and gagged Sunday in this guy's basement. This guy is Matthew Hoffman. He's since been arrested, bond set for $1 million. He's charged with her kidnapping. But the big question is, what happened to her mother, her brother, and a family friend?

So, here are pictures. We're waiting for someone to step in front of that podium to let us know.

We have heard from one of our affiliate out of Columbus, WBNS, according to the son of one of the missing women, that they should be telling us that there have been bodies found. Again, that is according to WBNS.

We're watching, we're waiting for that.

Meantime, let's talk about the president.

President Obama wants the Senate to pass a new arms reduction treaty with Russia, and he wants the Senate to do it not later -- do it now. The president says it should be a top priority for this Congress. He says the U.S. cannot afford to gamble on the need to monitor Russia's nuclear stockpile.

Wolf Blitzer watching all of this in "THE SITUATION ROOM."

And Wolf, the president is trying to push this through now because the next Congress, of course, with Republicans as the majority in the House, may not support it.

WOLF BLITZER, CNN ANCHOR: In the Senate, the Senate has to ratify it. They need 67 votes to ratify a treaty with another country, and it's close right now. They are not at 67 yet. They need some major Republicans to come on board.

They have Senator Lugar, the Republican from Indiana, on board, but they need several more in order to get this ratified during this lame-duck session. The president is doing whatever he can, including providing an extra $4 billion or so to modernize the nuclear arsenal in the United States, even in the face of some reductions in the number of nuclear missiles, part of this treaty.

And he's making the case that Republican administrations have done similar strategic arm reduction treaties with Russia earlier, with the Soviet Union, and if the U.S. doesn't go forward with ratifying this treaty now, verification, the inspection process, is going to go away. So the national security, they argue, will be enhanced if the ratification is done in the next couple of weeks or so.

We'll see if they can do it. But there's no doubt, as you know, Brooke, this is a high priority for the White House right now.

BALDWIN: High priority for the White House. Also a high priority for a lot of Americans out there, keeping programs like Medicare, Social Security, even, perhaps, if it means not reducing the deficit. BLITZER: In the new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll, you're absolutely right, the American public wants to start cutting domestic spending, significant numbers, but they don't want to touch, at least large majorities, Medicare, Medicaid or Social Security. And so much of the domestic money and those entitlement programs -- and if you don't touch spending in Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security, where are you going to start cutting?

You can cut national defense, the Pentagon's budget. A lot of people don't want to do that. The other spending cuts are relatively modest. They're not going to really do the job.

So, if you want to deal with cutting that deficit, cutting the national debt, you've got to go where the money is, which is really in the entitlement programs.

BALDWIN: All right.

Wolf Blitzer, we will see you in "THE SITUATION ROOM" eight minutes from now.

Thank you, sir.

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BALDWIN: Thirty-three rescued Chilean miners, their family members, even some of the rescuers -- five, I think -- are all getting a taste of Hollywood today.

CNN Heroes brought this entire group -- imagine them all traveling together -- all the way to Los Angeles, and they will be in that audience at the "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute" event next week.

Now, many of the miners have never even been out of Chile, let alone hopping two flights to get to L.A.. Their journey started in Santiago. There was a quick stop in Atlanta this morning before touching down in L.A.

And our Gary Tuchman traveled with the miners all the way from Chile, all the way through Atlanta early this morning.

Gary, and now they're in L.A. Gary Tuchman, one of my favorites here at CNN, you have such an awesome assignment. Can we please first talk about, what was that like traveling with this whole Chilean entourage? And were people on the plane kind of like doing double- takes? I mean, did they know who these men were?

GARY TUCHMAN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Brooke, I'll tell you, people are so honored to meet these Chilean miners. I mean, they are truly regarded as heroes because they have heroic perseverance to survive this. And the rescuers who are here in Los Angeles, true heroes to go down in the mine 2,200 feet to help rescue them.

But keep this in mind -- between the beginning of August and middle of October, these 33 men were 2,200 feet under ground in the dark. The first 17 days, they didn't know if anyone knew they were live. It was 95 degrees at times, 90 percent humidity.

And now, here in the middle of November, they're in this luxury hotel in Los Angeles, resting now, and they deserve it because they were flying all night and all day, nine hours from Santiago to Atlanta. Get off the plane in Atlanta, were wandering through the terminal. Everyone was clapping for them. They just can't believe their good fortune, that they're seeing these Chilean miners who they saw on TV.

Then boarding another plane, four-and-a-half-hour flight here to Los Angeles. So they're resting now.

In about an hour, they're going to come out of the hotel, we're going to board buses, we're going to tour Los Angeles, Hollywood, Beverly Hills, have a lot of fun like any typical tourist. And as you said, keep this in mind -- most of these people have not left Chile before. Their first plane flight for many of them was last week.

We were down in Chile with them last week because we had to fly them. They're guests of CNN here, we should tell you that, and we're honored to be telling you that.

But they had to fly from Copiaop, the city near where the mine was, to Santiago to get their visas to come to the United States. For many, that was their first flight.

Today, for many, it was their second flight. So here they are in southern California, attending the heroes presentation, going around California, having some good meals. They're just having a good time, and we're really honored to be part of this. No question about it -- Brooke.

BALDWIN: So much fun. And Gary, I have just one minute, so I'll just stick with one question.

I'm sure you've been talking to a lot of the different miners. You speak a little Espanol. And I know you were speaking with the youngest miner, right? He got engaged when he was underground, but I'm hearing he's having some second thoughts, huh?

TUCHMAN: It was a little hard for me to hear you, but I think you were talking about having second thoughts. One of the things that's really interesting --

BALDWIN: The youngest miner, Gary.

TUCHMAN: Oh, I'm sorry. Oh, I know. Second thoughts about getting married. Is that what your question is?

BALDWIN: Yes.

TUCHMAN: OK, yes. This is really interesting.

Jimmy Sanchez -- Jimmy's 19 years old. A great guy. And all these miners were able to take family members here.

He took his father. A good son.

So while he was in the ground he said -- he's a dad, he's a father, but he's not married. And he said he realized while he was underground, he said that, "I want to marry the mother of my child. I love her and I want to marry her."

Well, this is the news. We tell the truth. And he basically said, "You know what? Still love her, still care for her, but I'm 19 years old, not ready to get married just yet."

BALDWIN: Gary Tuchman, have a blast with them. Tell them "hello" from all of us here at CNN in Atlanta. Enjoy your tour around Los Angeles.

And on that note, let's turn things over to Wolf Blitzer in Washington with "THE SITUATION ROOM" -- Wolf.