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Tweet First, Act Later; Emergency Landing at JFK; Public Fury over TSA; Campus Leader is Illegal Immigrant; Saudi King Seeking Treatment

Aired November 21, 2010 - 19:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hey listen up, breaking news here on CNN. We want to tell you about -- we told you about the -- the emergency landing of a Delta Flight at JFK Airport, right? So we're going to talk to our Susan Candiotti about that.

Susan has some more information. She is our national correspondent. These are the first pictures that were getting in. And look at all of the fire department and emergency apparatus on the scene there at JFK.

Again, we know it was Flight 30 we are told and not exactly sure how many passengers were on board. We're told up to 200. Do we have our Susan Candiotti with us?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We do.

LEMON: Susan joins us from New York.

Susan, again, these are the first pictures. Do we have new information on this?

CANDIOTTI: We certainly do. And you can see by all of that activity that the authorities at JFK airport were well -- well-prepared for this possible emergency situation.

Now, what happened was that just before 5:00 tonight, Delta Flight 30, that's a flight from JFK to Moscow, with 193 passengers aboard, we don't know how many crew members, Delta tells us. But this Boeing 767 model 300 took off, and shortly after takeoff according to Delta the pilots found that there was a problem, some sort of problem with one of the engines.

And so after that they decided to, according to our airport source, decided to dump some fuel as a precaution. Now, the FAA reports that there was a problem with the left engine and insists that any reports that a right wing was on fire are not accurate at all.

However, after the plane dumped some fuel, it landed safely at JFK airport and as you can see, the fire department was prepared just in case there was a problem. There was not.

The plane landed safely, and all of the 193 passengers and additional crew members deplaned and the plan was, of course, to get the passengers on another flight on to Moscow as soon as that is possible. At this time Delta does not know what caused the problem, but certainly authorities are looking into it, including the FAA, including authorities at JFK airport all trying to get to the bottom of this.

We know that there's a -- a fuel capacity of 62,100 pounds that that particular model can handle, but we have no idea how many gallons of fuel were on board that flight. Also Delta could not tell us, Don, whether there were any flames or smoke aboard the plane, but certainly regardless it had to be a frightening situation for everyone aboard.

LEMON: All right. Susan Candiotti, thank you very much.

I'm going to tell you -- you're looking at new pictures. Let's put those new pictures up. The first pictures of that incident that happened at JFK airport just a short time ago that involves a Delta flight.

This is coming in from our affiliates in New York City and there you saw our Susan Candiotti, our national correspondent reporting on the very latest on that. This is courtesy of our affiliate New York 1.

This is Flight Aware right now which is showing us what happened. It tracked the flight, this flight, flight number 30 as it took off from JFK airport and then it was headed to Moscow and then it had a problem.

So it circled and what you're seeing there as it circled over the ocean there, that it dumped some -- some fuel, and to -- because of the capacity, you heard Susan Candiotti talking about the capacity of the -- of the tanks on -- on board that Boeing 767. And so it -- it dumped fuel there and then again landed safely, landed safely.

I want to say that if you have any information, send it to iReport. Go to iReport.com if you have any information. Or you can logon to Twitter or Facebook and look for CNN.com/DonLemonCNN.

Susan Candiotti, more information. What do you have as we look at these new pictures -- Susan?

CANDIOTTI: Well, just to reiterate as well that authorities said that all of this started and ended within an hour's time, that the plane took off just before 5:00, Don, and they were able to land the flight close to 50 minutes later. By the time they sat down again after they noticed there was a problem, after they dumped some fuel, they were able to put the plane down safely about just under 50 minutes later.

LEMON: And then are we hearing anything from passengers on board that plane, Susan? Have you heard anything from your sources or from our affiliates on the ground?

CANDIOTTI: Well, there are lots of crews that are out there now and we are all trying to talk to the passengers as they get off the plane, if we have access to them. Perhaps some of them will be able to get on their telephones and make some phone calls out to try to tell us more about what happened. And actually the questions -- a lot of questions about what might have caused this. So as of now purely speculation as to what might have happened. Some people are even suggesting the possibility of a bird strike, but at this time we want to stress we have no idea exactly what caused this right now.

LEMON: Oh shades of Sully. Sully Sullenberger, the -- the pilot who landed on the -- on the -- on the Hudson River.

CANDIOTTI: On the Hudson.

LEMON: Yes, just a bit ago. Unbelievable.

Ok, Susan I'm trying to get some information -- more information for you here on CNN. We are getting information from my producers in my ear and we're checking with our sources as well.

Susan Candiotti, this is a huge story. So make sure you stay with us. We're going to continue to follow this one.

Again, a problem with a Delta Airlines plane that was headed to Moscow from JFK Airport, and boy, couldn't have happened at a worse time really because so many people now are starting to travel for the holiday season. And that's what we're going to talk about.

Our Jacqui Jeras is going to be here to tell us where the weather is already causing some travel delays. She's at our travel desk right now.

We want you again, to be a part of the conversation. We told you how you can help us out on this breaking news. If you have any video and you have some pictures, you can go to iReport.com or look at any of the social media sites right there. You can send it to us and we'll get it on the air and we'll vet it first.

We're back in a moment with breaking news and more.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Following breaking news here on CNN.

A Delta Airlines flight having trouble at JFK Airport having to make an emergency landing; our Susan Candiotti with new information now from Delta Airlines -- Susan.

CANDIOTTI: Well, they released a statement just moments ago, and so I'm going to read it to you, Don. It gives us a bit more additional information here. It says, "Delta Flight 30 departed New York JFK for Moscow this evening at 4:39 p.m." That time is a little bit different, slightly off what we had. "Shortly after takeoff the crew reported that engine problem, declared an emergency, and landed safely at JFK at just about 6:00 tonight without further incident", says Delta.

"All 193 passengers and 11 crew members have safely deplaned," says Delta. "Passengers are being re-accommodated" they say, put on another aircraft which is scheduled for takeoff for Moscow at about 8:00 tonight Eastern Time.

Again, no word on what caused the engine problem. Back to you Don.

LEMON: Susan Candiotti, stand by. I'm sure we'll be relying on you a lot this hour. We appreciate it.

Let's hope this -- nothing like this happens again, but what about those new security rules, those full body pat downs? I think we can all agree that flying is pretty awful this time of year.

You have already got the long lines and the delayed flights, but this Thanksgiving many travelers are running into new security rules for the first time and they don't like it. They don't like it one bit.

The TSA is ramping up the use of those full body scanners as we know, and if you refuse one, be ready for a very up close and personal pat down. Despite the growing backlash though, the head of the TSA tells CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION" with Candy Crowley that you shouldn't expect any changes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN PISTOLE, ADMINISTRATOR, TSA: No, we're not changing the policies because of that, because of the risks that are -- have been identified, because of the current threat. We have a travel advisory to Europe now. We know through intelligence that there are determined people, terrorists, who are trying to kill not only Americans but innocent people around the world.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton doesn't have to go through the screening, but she says she understands why people are getting so angry.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HILLARY CLINTON, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE: Let's not kid ourselves. The terrorists are adaptable. They start doing whatever they can to try to cause harm. And when you have people who are willing to die in order to kill Americans and others, you've got folks putting explosives in their underwear. Who would have thought that?

So striking the right balance is what this is about, and I am absolutely confident that our security experts are going to keep trying to get it better and less intrusive and more precise, but at the same time we want people to travel safely.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So that was Secretary of State Hillary Clinton there on CNN's "STATE OF THE UNION" with Candy Crowley earlier today.

We're going to bring in two people though with unique perspectives on this. Rafi Ron is the president of New Age Security Solutions, a company that consults on aviation security matters. And then -- is someone talking to me? Sorry. Ok. All right.

And then joining us on the phone is a woman we have been talking about all weekend. I'm talking about Cathi Bossi. She's a flight attendant who says she suffered a humiliating ordeal at the hands of the TSA a few months. So let's start with you Cathi.

Cathi, sorry about that. A producer was talking in my ear and we certainly apologize for that.

CATHI BOSSI, FLIGHT ATTENDANT: No problem.

LEMON: What happened to you? This happened before though these new rules -- these new pat down rules in your case, right?

BOSSI: Yes, it did. It occurred when I was going to work, going through security, which is a normal procedure, and I was selected by the TSA to go through the new full body scanners.

My concern is because I have had cancer and I get enough radiation on the airplanes when I fly, that additional radiation to me was questionable, but being the flight attendant I am, I did as I was told. When I got in the body scanner, the TSA agent told me to place my ID behind my back so they couldn't see it in the front.

And when they were done screening, she told me that I didn't listen to her and that I need to now go through a full body screening which is where I was asked to remove my prosthetic breast.

LEMON: Unbelievable. Were you -- I'm sure were you just in shock when she asked you that?

BOSSI: I was horribly shocked and it was just -- and the reason why I didn't report it, like I said, I'm used to that as a flight attendant, having to go through the security measures because I realize that security is very important with the airline industry.

However, doing it to a flight crew member is a waste of resources. As you just mentioned, Captain Sullenberger even says that it's a waste of resources because we're already highly scrutinized group of people.

But the reason why I'm stepping up is because these are invasive searches that are now coming up and it just -- I don't know where the government is going to stop with this.

LEMON: So listen, we reached out to the TSA and they sent us a statement saying they were looking into it and whatever it -- they would take appropriate action and they were going to review it. So that's what they're saying.

But listen, this forced you really to come out in a way and talk about this because you think it is a bit -- a little bit ridiculous. You understand the safety as a flight attendant, but this was just the final straw for you.

BOSSI: It was. It was. And seeing that other -- that small children are being groped, hearing about the stories, hearing about people that have been sexually abused that don't like being touched, I have had just -- since I have spoken up, I have had several thousand people tell me of similar instances even before this new personal scanning has come to play. So it just makes me wonder what's next.

LEMON: Are you considering legal action?

BOSSI: No. I think my story at this point is over and done with. No, I don't have a problem with that. Like I said, I am a flight attendant. I do understand the importance of security. It's just that I think it's gone a step too far.

If the terrorists want to get us, the terrorists are going to get us.

LEMON: Thank you so much. Sorry you had to go through that. I can just imagine when we saw this. Everyone in the room said I can't imagine your mom, your sister, your wife, especially if you have gone through cancer and having to do what you have done, just reliving this all over again.

Thank you so much. Best of luck to you.

BOSSI: Thank you, sir.

LEMON: All right. Cathi is going to be on tomorrow on CNN, by the way, 3:00 to 5:00 p.m. here with our very own Brooke Baldwin. So make sure you tune in. She'll be here and you'll see her on camera tomorrow.

Thanks to her.

Let's go to Rafi now. So Rafi, very interesting. what do you make of her story?

RAFI RON, PRESIDENT, NEW AGE SECURITY SOLUTIONS: Well, obviously it's very difficult to refer to this specific story as I'm sure that there are a lot of more details to be learned about it. But I think it does represent the level of sometimes absurd that we have reached following the attempt to provide a single level of security across the board to everybody.

And what Cathi pointed out was the fact that she and the rest of the crew have gone through a vetting process that looked into their background. Actually, the pilots that hold the stick of the aircraft in their hands, they obviously are going through the background checks necessary to make sure that they will not fly the aircraft in the wrong direction.

So it obviously brings up the question, are we right with this approach of one size fits all security that we are implementing across the board?

LEMON: So then what do you suggest? A lot of people say we need to look at Israel and look at other countries who have problems with terrorism. Maybe we should do it their way.

RON: Well, the Israeli solution is obviously -- has proven to be very effective for the last 40 years or so.

LEMON: But do people complain -- in the airports in Israel -- do people complain about these pat downs, about their techniques as well?

RON: No, not very much. Because people in Israel understand the need for it, but on the other hand or by the same token --

LEMON: Are their measures as invasive as the ones we have here now?

RON: Well, they're not invasive for 100 percent of the population because the concept in Israel recognizes the fact that every passenger brings in a different level of risk, and the level of search is adjusted to the level of risk.

So Cathi, for example, would not have gone through the level of search that she's going through every time she now flies.

LEMON: Hey Rafi, one last question to you. I want to talk to you about the so-called "National Opt-Out Day". It's a social movement based on people who are saying they're going to refuse these body scans on a very busy day during a very busy Thanksgiving travel season as to -- in protest and then backing up lines and causing chaos. What do you make of this?

RON: Well, I hope they will come back to their senses and understand that security is not a matter that you can fool around with. In order to make a political point, which they have already made by this time, the fact that we're discussing this issue is the proof of that. It's enough, and I think that they should call it off because I think that we are only creating vulnerabilities by doing this type of demonstrations at the airport. I think that the level of security will be reduced on the day when the demonstration will be on.

LEMON: Rafi Ron is the president of New Age Security Solutions. It's a company that consults on aviation security matters.

Thank you, sir. We'll be talking to you a lot I'm sure in the coming weeks. Appreciate it.

RON: Thank you.

LEMON: Still ahead here, the student body president at Fresno State University comes out as an illegal immigrant.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: For me it's a big relief. You know, I have been holding this in for the majority of my life since I found out in high school.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: He's going to be with us here to talk about it and how people are reacting to his news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) LEMON: Our breaking news on CNN, a Delta Airlines flight diverted -- had to make an emergency landing, returned back to JFK Airport. It was headed to Moscow.

Our Susan Candiotti, our national correspondent, has been following this story. Susan, I understand you have some new information for us.

CANDIOTTI: We do. Just a recap here: 193 passengers, 11 crew members aboard that flight; Flight number 30, Delta flight, going from JFK to Moscow. But it did land safely after -- shortly after takeoff. There was a problem with the left engine according to Delta Airlines.

And now we have this additional information coming to us from the FAA spokesperson; her name, Holly Baker. And she tells us that after takeoff that the pilots said there was an automatic shut down of the left engine on the plane which is engine number one. However, she said, there are no reports of any fire involving that engine or on the plane. That's pretty important information -- very important information to pass on. No report of a fire according to the spokesperson for the FAA.

The plane did land safely after taking off at about 4:40 p.m. Eastern time and then landed at about 6:00 p.m. at JFK. They're trying to determine exactly what the problem was with the aircraft but all the passengers deplaned safely and they will be getting aboard another flight to Moscow scheduled to leave at about 8:00 Eastern time tonight -- Don.

LEMON: Susan Candiotti is following this story for us. And Susan, imagine the stories that will come from the passengers aboard that plane and I'm sure we'll be hearing from them shortly.

Stand by, Susan, we'll get back to you in this broadcast if it warrants it.

In the meantime, we're going to move on and go out west. He's the popular student body president at Fresno State University in California. Now he's rejecting calls that he step down and it's not because of anything that he did, it's because of who he is.

Pedro Ramirez turns out to be an illegal immigrant. He was outed last week in an anonymous e-mail to the campus newspaper. He joins us now live from Fresno, California.

Thank you, sir. As I understand, you did not find out -- and this is what I read, I believe this is according to the "L.A. Times" here. It says that you did not know you weren't a citizen until you were a senior in high school. As long as you can remember, he said, his parents, a maid and a restaurant worker, told him he must work hard and achieve the American dream. You did not know that but yet -- still you went to the university and you became president.

PEDRO RAMIREZ, STUDENT BODY PRESIDENT, FRESNO STATE: Uh-huh, that's correct.

LEMON: So how do you feel about that? (CROSSTALK)

RAMIREZ: Well, go ahead.

LEMON: Continue. We have the delay here.

RAMIREZ: The way I feel -- what I feel is that I have been here the majority of my life, most of my life. All my memories are here in America, you know. I remember waking up at 7:00 a.m. going to elementary school with all my peers, getting on the bus. I remember pledging allegiance since I was 5 years old and all the way through high school and all the way into college.

I remember working hard, going to school, studying, getting good grades, becoming (INAUDIBLE) and graduating on top of my class.

LEMON: If you knew when you were in high school before you went to college, why did you do such a public thing?

RAMIREZ: For me I always like to get involved. Especially in high school I was always involved in campus clubs and organizations, and I carried that spirit on through college. I got involved in the university marching band for about a year. I got involved in a lot of clubs and organizations and I thought I would get involved in student government.

So I ran, you know, my junior year as a senator. Then I thought I could maybe do a bit better and serve as a university college president, and that's what I did.

LEMON: But you didn't think people would find out about you if you did that? You would think -- one would think you would try to keep a low profile considering that you had already learned. That's what I'm asking. You didn't think that you'd be outed?

RAMIREZ: No, I didn't think I'd be outed because like I said I served as a senator before and I didn't bring any controversy. Nobody knew and I did everything I did as a senator that I was supposed to do and I got just as involved.

You know, that's what my mentality is that, you know, no one would find out. Nobody knew then and no one would know now.

LEMON: Well, Pedro, you're not the only one. What do you say about other people like you? Because there are people in the country who are going to say, hey listen, your parents broke the law and right now legally there should be some sort of ramification for what happened for you and for them as well.

RAMIREZ: Yes, you're absolutely right. I am not the only one. There's thousands and thousands of students out there. I am not the only student leader that was -- that came out this week. There was a student from Miami, from Florida, that -- he also was elected as the student body president and he's also undocumented. We share that bond. But there are thousands of students out there that are undocumented that were brought here as children and didn't know at a very young age.

(CROSSTALK)

LEMON: But Pedro, what I'm saying to you even though there are lots of people there, the law was still broken. I'm asking you what should happen to you, to your parents, and to those other people?

RAMIREZ: What I ask is that -- I ask for forgiveness and permission to stay in this country and serve it, continue serving it, you know. To create a pathway for legalization for the thousands of students and for the millions of other individuals that are here undocumented.

Give us a chance, create that pathway so we can build this country even better.

LEMON: All right, Pedro Ramirez, there's a rally on Friday. You've been asked to step down by some people. And again this is just the beginning of this. Will you come back no matter what happens here and talk to us?

RAMIREZ: Absolutely.

LEMON: All right. Thank you. Best of luck to you. Appreciate it.

RAMIREZ: Thank you.

LEMON: Thank you.

Up next here on CNN, Hillary says she is not running for president in 2012. We're talking about the Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton. We'll hear from her and have the other big political stories of the day.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Oh yes, it's time for politics right now, and we're going to bring in our senior political editor Mark Preston. Mark, we're talking about the midterm elections. Got a lot of news coverage, and I told you this when I was out there, a lot of people touring the country were saying, "what, there's an election on Tuesday?"

So we couldn't get enough of the coverage but you couldn't escape the chatter really about the Tea Party, the candidates, the whole thing but apparently a lot of people did not pay attention. So Mark, I want you to check out this poll that we have.

The Pew Research Center found that 46 percent of Americans, less than half, know that the Republicans won control of the House of Representatives and only 38 percent know that Congressman John Boehner will be the next speaker of the House. So, Mark, here is the thing, a lot of people live in a vacuum. It's not to say it's right people don't know, but they just don't know. What do you make of this? MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Yes, it's tragic, isn't it, Don? I mean, it's disturbing and tragic.

LEMON: I don't know if I would say that. Not that I want to disagree with you. I think that people are so focused on their lives and on paying the bills and on whether they're going to have a job and getting their kids to school or whatever, that they're not always following the latest thing that happened in Washington and are not in front of the television every single second like we might think.

PRESTON: Yes, and look, we get paid to follow this day to day, minute to minute, right? So I'll give them that. And I can understand that if they don't know who John Boehner is, but the fact that they don't know that the Republicans took back the House of Representatives, to me, that's disturbing. And the reason being is that people complain a lot and they have a lot to complain about. The economy is bad, the Housing market is bad, but you can't complain if you can't try to enact some change and you can't enact change if you don't have knowledge, and if you don't have any knowledge, then how can you enact change?

So it's one of these things, Don, where like if folks are so mad at Washington and they want Washington to change, then they should pay attention to Washington. And I think if you look at that 46 percent number, that's pretty disturbing.

LEMON: Yes. Ignorance is not necessarily bliss in this circumstance.

PRESTON: No.

LEMON: Let's talk about the lame duck Congress. It has a lot of work to do, but we're already hearing about the presidential election in 2012? I mean, really?

PRESTON: Yes, no doubt. I was in New Hampshire just about five or six days ago doing a little prospecting in talking to folks up there, and kind of getting their idea about when they think this is actually going to take off. You know, back in 2006, Don, right after the midterm elections, John McCain and Rudy Giuliani were already taking serious steps to run for president. In fact, they had filed official paperwork for the Federal Election Commission to form these exploratory committees.

We haven't seen that so far. But we do know that folks are spending a lot of time in New Hampshire. Folks such as Newt Gingrich and Tim Pawlenty and Mitt Romney. They're spending a lot of time in New Hampshire. They're also spending a lot of time in Iowa and South Carolina. So the race is kind of already started.

LEMON: Yes, and, again, you know, that just sort of speaks to the fact we're saying that we just had the midterm election. It's two years, the president has been in office two years and already we're talking about the next presidential election and I'm sure Americans are like that's way too far down the road for me. I can't even get there yet.

PRESTON: It is.

LEMON: Thank you, sir. We'll see you at 10:00 p.m.

PRESTON: Thanks, Don.

LEMON: Nasty weather causes hundreds of crashes in Minnesota. We're going to check in with our Jacqui Jeras with a look at your holiday travel forecast.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Check the top stories. This is our breaking news on much of the evening on CNN.

A Delta Airlines flight en route to Moscow made an emergency landing this evening about an hour after taking off in New York. The FAA reports the plane had problems with its left engine. We're told the pilot just as a precaution dumped fuel and returned to JFK Airport where he landed safely just before 6:00 p.m. Eastern tonight. Delta confirms 193 passengers were on board the plane and not one of them was injured. They will be put on another flight this evening and will continue to follow this story.

Utah park ranger Brody Young remains in critical but stable condition tonight and the search continues for the gunman who repeatedly shot him. Investigators are combing through top terrain looking for that suspect by land and also by air. Yesterday police found a rifle, a backpack, and a bloody t-shirt that they believe belonged to the suspect whose name has not been released. 34-year-old Young man was shot after he stopped a man while on patrol.

The king of Saudi Arabia is coming to the U.S. for a medical treatment. 86-year-old King Abdullah has been suffering from a herniated disk in his back. Now a blood clot has developed near that disk. The king is making the trip on the recommendation of his medical team. He is expected to fly to the U.S. tomorrow. You can better believe we'll be following that story as well.

She had it all and then it was all taken away. Her daughter, her marriage, and her home. Iyanla Vanzant defines the meaning really of survivor and we're going to talk with her straight ahead here.

And as you get ready to travel this holiday week, we got your forecast for you and we'll show you where we're already seeing some travel delays.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: This is going to be an interesting conversation. Even I know it is before I even start it. By most perceptions Iyanla had everything, best selling books, speaking engagements, even her own TV show. But then the bottom really dropped out. Losing her daughter to cancer, her husband to divorce, and her home to bankruptcy. That's because medical bills and a subprime mortgage had pushed her to the financial brink, but Iyanla isn't the type to give up. She has a new book out, it is called "Peace from Broken Pieces, how to get through what you're going through."

Iyanla Vanzant joins me now live to tell me more about it. Iyanla, you're described as a personal growth guru, relationship expert but everything wasn't OK with you in your life. And I have to say this to you, you know where I know you from? "In the Meantime."

IYANLA VANZANT, AUTHOR & SPIRITUAL LIFE COACH: Oh, yes.

LEMON: "In the Meantime." That book changed a lot of lives.

VANZANT: Yes, It's a good book and the work that I have done over the course of 25 years is good work. I think what my story indicates is no one is immune. We're not immune from life's challenges. We're not immune from life's difficulties. The distinction is you've got to know how to get through what you're going through and so I just thought I would share that with people at this time.

LEMON: You had an amazing story even before this all happened with your daughter with the subprime mortgage with the divorce. You were in a marriage and there was an abusive marriage and you got it all together because of your spirituality and -

VANZANT: My faith.

LEMON: And you taught other people about it and then you became this big star on "Oprah" and then there was a falling out.

VANZANT: Yes. No, not a falling out. I want to get that real clear. It wasn't a falling out with me and Oprah. Here's the bottom line. I can tell you a wonderfully flowery story. I made a poor choice. I made a poor choice and my choice was to stand on my own before I could really stand. I didn't know a lot about television, but I made a choice that Miss Winfrey couldn't support, and I left and went with another network, and they weren't supportive. These people did not support me and who I was. They did not support my vision. So in their trying to make me something else, they ended up with nothing. The miss the magic of Iyanla, trying to make me somebody else.

LEMON: Do you regret that?

VANZANT: No, no. It's all lesson, Don. It's - listen, I got a $10 million education in how to do television. OK? I can't regret that.

LEMON: What do you mean by that? Tell me.

VANZANT: Well, the things that I learned about myself, about the industry, about production, about direction, about how to speak in 30 second sound bites so that people like you can do a quick interview. I learned a lot. I learned a lot about myself, and I learned about the cracks in my foundation, which is what I write about in "Peace from Broken Pieces" because I had grown up so fast in my career, in the industry, in my writing, my work is good, my work is solid, but there was a crack inside.

And so my life couldn't hold where I rose to because my foundation was cracked. LEMON: Here - I have to ask you this. You said $10 million. I don't know if that's a number, if that means anything or if you were just throwing out a random number. Were you a millionaire at one point?

VANZANT: Yes, I was.

LEMON: You were.

VANZANT: Yes. I was. I was a millionaire. Because you can have $1 million. You spend $1 you're no longer a millionaire but I was a millionaire.

LEMON: So listen, how does one like Iyanla Vanzant who teaches people about how to get their lives together, their heads together, their spirit together, then get involved with subprime, doesn't have the right sort of insurance or enough insurance to help pay the medical bills. How do you get yourself into that position?

VANZANT: Well, you know, I grew up in poverty. I didn't know anything about a mortgage. All I knew is I had enough money to buy a house, and so I bought a house. And I did not pay attention to the details.

LEMON: You thought it was going to keep happening, the money was going to keep rolling in.

VANZANT: Yes, absolutely. I thought it was going to keep rolling in. I was going to buy the house outright with my income from my show but my show went down and then my daughter got sick. It's not that I didn't have health insurance at the time. It's that the good stuff, the alternative care and the oxygen therapy and the acupuncture and the organic food. That's not covered by health insurance.

Plus, she had a mortgage, she had a car, she had a child. I had a mortgage, I had a car, you know, I had my own bills. So handling us both for 15 months before her ultimate transition wiped me out.

LEMON: And you know, I have to ask you this, so were you practicing then what you preach? Because I remember you talking about the foundation of the house. And you talked about financial issues as well.

VANZANT: Listen, let me tell you something, Don, do you see me? Do I look fabulous, nice and bright and shiny, right? Because when you watch them take your child, put that child in a box and close the cover on her face and lower her down into the earth, you got to have something else to stand on besides just looking good.

Yes, I do practice what I preach, and I'm not immune. The reason that I haven't lost my mind or blown my brains out is because I practice what I preach. And what I want people to understand and what I write about in "Peace from Broken Pieces" is you can make it through this because people right now aren't understanding that you can make it through it. I didn't do anything wrong. You didn't do anything wrong. Let them have the House, hold onto the things that matter, and you'll be fine. LEMON: Uh-huh. I'm sure that possessions you would given them all away to have your daughter -

VANZANT: For my baby, to have my baby in my arms. Absolutely.

LEMON: Iyanla Vanzant, thank you very much. I think people need to hear that and we wish you the very best. Blessings to you. Blessings, OK?

VANZANT: Thank you. I accept.

LEMON: All right.

Still ahead here on CNN, kids overwhelmed at school. We'll talk with a documentary filmmaker who found students are anxious, depressed, and really cheating their way through high school leaving them unprepared for what lies ahead in college.

Plus, if you're traveling for the holidays this week, we've got your covered here on CNN. We'll have a preview of what you can expect.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: We've been following breaking news here on CNN. A Delta Airlines flight having some trouble and our Susan Candiotti is following that story. The plane was en route from JFK to Moscow and had to turn around because of some engine trouble. Susan what do you have for us now?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: And the plane did land safely. We have information, a first eyewitness account. This coming to us from the president of the Air Traffic Controllers Association at JFK, who spoke directly to the air traffic controller who handled this flight. And he says that the controller shortly after the plane took off, within seconds, described what he says he thinks could have been a flame, followed immediately by a pretty good sized plume of smoke.

And this happened within a mile of takeoff so the flight was about 1,400, 1,500 feet in the air. The plane, as we know, turned around and landed safely. When I asked what might have caused this, he said, "well, there's a question as to whether it was either a bird or an engine stall, a compressor stall," but he said that's purely speculation. Doesn't know at this time. He'll have to examine the engine.

LEMON: All right. Susan Candiotti, thank you for your reporting on this. And check with us here on CNN because we'll have this all evening and we'll be checking on that to find out exactly what happened and once we - Susan starts to talk to passengers, we'll get that on as well.

If you're traveling this holiday week you can expect plenty of company. A lot of people are going to be traveling. A lot of Americans are feeling better about the economy these days and they plan to hit the road. The nation's highways and airports are expected to be packed. And here's something you don't want to hear. The weather is already getting dicey in some parts of the country. So, that's all of the bad news that I will deliver. I will let our meteorologist Jacqui Jeras deliver the rest of it for us. I'll smile afterwards and read a happy story.

JERAS: Yes, well, there are troubles out there. You know, and maybe it's good news for the people who aren't traveling today, that maybe they'll see better weather down the line because we've got a couple of storm systems that are going to be affecting the entire country that we're going to need to watch.

We're going to start off by showing you some video here, out of the twin cities. The Minnesota Department of Transportation reported about 300 to 400 accidents in the last 24 hours due to icy road conditions. We had some freezing rain. So this wasn't a snowstorm. This is rain that comes down and freezes on contact and just causes basically ice skating conditions there on the roadways.

Now, let's take you over to Utah where the snow has been coming down very heavy. Take a look at these pictures out of Salt Lake City. We've had more than two feet of snow into the higher elevations across the Wasatch, about a foot on the benches. More snow to come Tuesday and into Wednesday for you in Salt Lake City.

All right. The big storm systems out west, this has been the big travel trouble today, rain into the valleys and then the snow highest into elevations. Look at how heavy it's coming down right now across western parts of Colorado, i-70, i-80, you're going to have problems across parts of the west. Now, if you're traveling by the air, today has been pretty minimal.

Problems at Chicago O'Hare, one hour and 15 minute delays arriving into Chicago. So if you're trying to take of out of Chicago, you're doing OK. JFK, 30-minute delays. That's on the increase. Tomorrow, if that's your travel day, more snow and rain out west. And we'll see some showers here in the nation's midsection. Expect delays. St. Louis, Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit, maybe even Indianapolis. But it looks good on the East Coast and we'll end it on good news so maybe I can have some happy viewers.

LEMON: You delivered it with a smile. Over the river and through the woods, is that Christmas?

JERAS: Well, to grandmother's house we go. You know, that holidays.

LEMON: Thank you, Jacqui. Appreciate it.

Let's move on and talk about some recent documentaries have focused attention on problems in the nation's school system. One of the films called "Race to Nowhere" looks at how the pressure to succeed may be creating students who are stressed out and unprepared.

CNN's education contributor Steve Perry talks with the film's director in this edition of "Perry's Principles.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

STEVE PERRY, CNN EDUCATION CONTRIBUTOR (voice-over): For Vicki Abeles, the decision to make her first film was personal. Her seventh grade daughter was so concerned about school that she began having panic attacks.

VICKI ABELES, DIRECTOR, "RACE TO NOWHERE": I wanted to understand what was going on. I started talking to parents in my community, to students, to experts, and visiting schools across the country.

PERRY: In her work on "Race to Nowhere," she says she discovered many children who were overwhelmed with home work, tests, activities and the pressures to succeed.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Everyone expects us to be superheroes.

ABELES: We are seeing kids who are anxious, who are depressed, who are and cheating to just get through high school. We are then, in the long term seeing, kids are arriving in college burned out, unprepared to do the kind of thinking that are required at the college level.

PERRY: But for me, what's interesting about the film is hearing some of the suggested ways in which schools can be improved.

(on camera): Some having to do with less or no homework on certain days.

ABELES: We're not saying no homework. We're saying let's look at what the research says around home work and let's do quality homework at the right time and the right amount developmentally. We're advocating for is a balanced approach to education and we need to move away from a one size fits all approach. I think we need to look at the individual student. For me, the solution is bringing communities together to have a dialogue.

PERRY (voice-over): Since the film was released in September, there's been hundreds of screenings across the country followed by discussions.

ABELES: It's important that you stay engaged. It takes time and commitment to do the, but I can't think of anything else more important.

PERRY: Steve Perry, Briar Cliff Manor, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right. We have spent much of the two hours about the growing backlash over those new TSA rules at airports. Well "Saturday Night Live," "SNL" couldn't resist having a little fun with it last night. Here's just part of it.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Feeling lonely this holiday season?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Looking for a little human interaction?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Do you want to feel contact in certain special places?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Then why not go through security at an airport?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The TSA.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Oh, the skit is much longer than that and it was really funny. You knew it was coming. You knew it was coming. Great episode of "SNL." But this is a serious story, by the way. "SNL" can be tongue in cheek like that but unfortunately, this is real news. And we'll be following that story because the travel season is starting, it's upon us and our travel desk will be up.

Also, we're going to follow this tonight at 10:00 p.m.. We told you about that issue at JFK Airport with the airplane. We'll have that for you at 10:00 p.m. Eastern here on CNN. "ESCAPE FROM JONESTOWN" starts right now.