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First Lady Obama Works With Wal-Mart On More Nutritious Foods; A Major Bank Admits Huge Military Home Loans Mistake; The Best Companies To Work For In America; Chinese President Hu Visits U.S.; Growing Political Crisis in Lebanon; Two Police Officers Shot and Killed in Miami; More Deadly Bombings in Iraq; Largest Single-Day Operations Against the Mob in U.S. History; Sundance Kicks Off
Aired January 20, 2011 - 13:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: Carol, thanks so much. You have a fantastic afternoon.
I'm Ali Velshi, with you for the next two hours.
Well, the FBI has been at war with organized crime since the days of Al Capone in the 1930s. That's his mug shot, by the way, over here. Over the past decade, and, especially, post-9/11, other priorities have gotten more attention, but G-men and women have not stopped fighting the mob, and, today, they made history.
More than 800 federal agents, state police and local cops carried out, perhaps, the biggest mafia roundup ever. One hundred ten arrests in New York, New Jersey, and Rhode Island, targeting bosses, captains, soldiers and petty crooks from seven families. Those would be to Gambino, Genovese, Lucchese, Bonanno and Colombo families in New York, the DeCavalcante family in Jersey, and the Patriarca family in New England.
The charges reads like a season's worth of the Sopranos. Murder, extortion, racketeering, loan sharking, some of them dating all the way back to the 1980s. Many, stemming from the mobs deeply rooted interest in construction, the waterfront, and gambling. The U.S. Attorney General, himself, Eric Holder, briefed reporters this morning, and here he talks about the alleged murders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ERIC HOLDER, U.S. ATTORNEY GENERAL: Some of these allegations involved classic mob hits to eliminate perceived rivals. Others involved, truly senseless murders. In one incidence, the victim was, allegedly, shot and killed during the botched robbery attempt, and two other murder victims, allegedly, were shot in a public bar, because of a dispute over a spilled drink.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: CNN's Mary Snow is on the case. She joins me for "Two at the Top."
Mary, it came -- it might come as a surprise to people that organized crime is so big and so active, today, in this traditional -- these families that there could be 100 arrests. This comes as news to some people.
MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: It comes news to a lot of people, Ali, because many thought that the influence of these organized crime families was waning, but as the attorney general said today, he wouldn't go as far to say that there is a resurgence, but, he said, it's a big threat, and one that FBI official says that it is a myth that the mob is gone.
You just named some of the charges in these indictments, but, also, you know, there were some other charges in terms of racketeering schemes that were named as well. The allegation that there were newspaper ads taken out. Falsely promising loans to people with bad credit for an upfront fee.
So, These are crimes that have gone back, as you mentioned, for the decades. And, you know, it's very rare that the attorney general would be here in New York to announce these criminal charges. These were 16 indictments, unrelated indictments. So, what brought him here, he said, this was that this was a major operation, and, he said, it was an unprecedented scope of local, state and federal agencies coming together to bring about these arrests.
VELSHI: All right. In a case where life imitates art, Mary, while these people are charged and not -- and not presumed guilty, we do have to talk about some of the names of these guys. You are a lifelong New Yorker. The names of the mafia, so, have not gone away?
SNOW: They have not. And I don't think that people would be so surprised to see some of the names, these street aliases, if you will, on these indictments. Bakala (ph), and Tony Bagelles (ph), and Johnny Pizza and Fat Dennis. And, as you mentioned, you know, most of these names are associated with those five organized crime families, here, in New York, that, as you said, so many people thought that the influence was waning, but, clearly, with the arrests today, it shows they have not.
VELSHI: I'd be curious to know if Fat Dennis named himself or got that name from someone else. Mary, the obituaries, every time we these arrests, they say we've really put a nail in the coffin, of these crime families. What's the sense, now? Is this as big a deal? Has this crippled the organized crime activity in the -- in that area?
SNOW: No, it is hard to say. And when you look at some of these charges, Ali, one of the defendants names in the indictments is 83 years old, which is an indictment from Rhode Island. But it's hard to imagine that there isn't a serious stun after the scope of these arrests, today.
VELSHI: All right. Mary, thanks very much for that. You'll continue to cover this. Mary Snow, by the way. Originally, from Brooklyn where her street alias is 'The news'. Mary, thanks very much.
Our "Sound Effect" today is pure elation. Twenty-three years in the making. On August 24, 1987, Joy White took her 3-week-old daughter, Carlina, to a New York hospital because she had a fever. The child was admitted. The mom went home to rest and when she came back, Carlina was gone. And she stayed gone, year after year. Birthday after birthday until January 24th of this year, when Joy White answered her phone, now a young adult, was on the other end.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PAT CONWAY, CARLINA'S AUNT: Carlina was a missing link and we have gotten her back in the name of Jesus. Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah.
ELIZABETH WHITE, CARLINA'S GRANDMOTHER: She was just like she had been around us all of her life. She was no stranger. She was just, you know, she fit right in.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Well, what happened in all of the missing years? It turns out that Carlina was raised under a different name in a family she never, really, felt she belonged in. She got suspicious when her mother couldn't show her birth certificate. So, she went on the Internet and found the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. A few phone calls and a DNA test later, she was back where she did belonged. The investigation into her kidnapping goes on.
OK. Now to some developing stories. A very tough and tense day for Miami's law enforcement community. One Miami-Dade police officer is dead. Another has been rushed into surgery after being shot executing an arrest warrant. The department called it a high-profile warrant that had the officers working with the U.S. Marshall's Fugitive Task Force. At least one suspected gunman, at the residence, was shot and killed by the Miami-Dade police. We're monitoring this story very closely. We will update you as soon as we have more information.
Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords' husband, Mark Kelly, has just updated us on her condition. He says, she is a fighter like nobody he knows. And he is sure she'll recover well enough to get back to work. She's made some attempts to speak, he said, but couldn't because of a trachea tube. Kelly also addressed the decision to move Giffords' to a rehab hospital, in Houston, he sided his world-class reputation and its location near where his two daughters live, which will let him be with them and his wife as much as possible.
Well, just a few days into office, Alabama Governor Robert Bentley sparked a controversy. Now, a few days in, he's trying to be tamp it down. Here's what he said at a Martin Luther King Day event on Monday. Quote. "Anybody who's here, today, who has not accepted Jesus Christ as their savior, I'm telling you, you are not my brother and you are not my sister."
Well, s you might expect, that raised some hackle, so he's just met with religious leaders of different faiths to try to explain. He offered this by way of explanation.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. ROBERT BENTLEY, ALABAMA: I would like to say that anyone who heard those words and felt disenfranchised, I want to say that I'm sorry. And if you're not a person who can say that you're sorry, then you are not a very good leader.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: OK. Well, the world's biggest retailer going on a huge health kick. First lady Michelle Obama has just helped Wal-Mart unveil a new five-year initiative to make the food it sells more nutritious. The plan, reduce salt, sugar and trans fat in store brands up and down the grocery aisle. Mrs. Obama has made Americans health issues one of her top priorities. She called Wal-Mart's move a huge victory a huge victory for folks all across the country.
Well, a major bank admits big mistakes on home loans for troops including accidental foreclosures. How does that happen? And what's being done about it? Next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Banking giant, JP Morgan Chase, admits that it overcharged more than 4,000 active duty military personnel on their home loans, and that it, mistakenly, foreclosed on 14 homes. Mistakenly, foreclosed on 14 homes.
The action violates rules on the books to protect those who put their lives on the line every day to protect us. CNN's Jason Carroll joins us, now, from New York on how it happened and what this bank is doing to try to correct the mistake -- Jason.
JASON CARROLL, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, Ali, as you can imagine, so many of these servicemen and women are already under so much pressure, in terms of deployment, and, now, imagine the pressure when you think that someone is trying to foreclose on your home. Well, this is exactly what happened.
As you say, the bank has already admitted to the costly mistake and tells CNN it is mailing refunds. And, Ali, the person who is largely responsible for all of this coming to light, well, her name is Julia Rolls. She called her family's experience with Chase, a four- year nightmare. She says it began, in 2006, when her and her husband -- when her husband went on active duty.
They notified Chase, because, according to federal law. The bank should have adjusted the mortgage rate under the Service Members Civil Relief Act. Interest rates should be capped for 6 percent for those on active duty, but Chase continued to charge the family up to 9 percent, saying that they owed more than $10,000.
The couple got an attorney, and discovered that the bank may have overcharged 4,000 military families, and, Ali, foreclosed on the homes of 14 service members.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) JULIA ROLLS, U.S. MILITARY: Every time we talked to Chase, they were telling us, we were in the wrong. It's amazing to me that we found out how big this is. This is our number one battle right now. If not for ourselves, but for the other families that I am speaking for them, right now, and I'm hoping that they are watching, right now, and listening and can understand and answer this call that Chase needs to be held accountable for their actions.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
CARROLL: Well, Chase has admitted to making the errors saying, we've made mistakes, here, and we are fixing them. There is no finer group of people than the men and women in the armed services, who fight to protect our country every day. And while any customer mistake is regrettable, we feel particularly badly about the mistakes we made here.
Well, the bank says it is mailing $2 million in refunds to service members overcharged and it has resolved 13 of the 14 accidental foreclosures. The Rolls still believe that they are owed money. They are suing the bank for themselves and other service members in the military in a class action lawsuit -- Ali.
VELSHI: Very nice - that was a good response from Chase that they made a mistake and they're sorry about it. Any explanation as to how mistakes, like this, happen? And, you know, I get that mistakes happen on things having to do with bank accounts. I don't get how accidental foreclosures happen. But have they offered any explanation?
CARROLL: Exactly. When you think about, you know, foreclosing on the homes of 14 people. And, not only that, but overcharging 4,000 members of the military. Big questions, there. So far, Chase has not come up with an explanation as to how this happened. Was this a systemic problem, was it a computer error, human error, still trying to sort that out. Perhaps it will come out if this class action lawsuit goes forward.
VELSHI: All right. I think it would be in the banks best interest to not have to wait for a class action and to come clean, because I think people want to know. Jason, thanks for being on this story. My good friend Jason Carroll in New York.
OK. Good companies to work with. There are many in America. They've got thousands of jobs -- job openings. And wait until you find out what kind of perks they offer. On the other side of the break, the best companies to work for in America.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: "Fortune" is out with its 14th annual list of 100 best companies to work for. Topping the list again this year is the software giant SAS, followed by Boston Consulting Group, Wegmans Food Markets, Google, NetApp, Zappos.com, Camden Property Trust, Nugget Market, Recreational Equipment, you'll know it as REI, and DreamWorks Animation SKG. When you flip through the pages of "Fortune," it's worth doing this, by the way, because everybody seems to be looking for either a job or a new job or a better job at a place that treats you well, what some of these companies offer their employees, well, it might get you thinking about switching jobs.
My good friend "Fortune" assistant managing editor Leigh Gallagher joins me now from New York.
Lee, I know you've been following this yearly. What are some of the neat perks that you've seen offered by some of the best companies this year?
LEIGH GALLAGHER, ASST. MANAGING EDITOR, "FORTUNE" MAGAZINE: Well, there are so many, Ali. I mean for this list, it's not enough to just have an onsite gym and, you know, great 401(k) matching. It is everything from -- at Cisco, for example, the networking company in California, you can get an oil change on campus. At SAS, the number one company that you mentioned, that company has more perks than probably any other company on the list. On their campus, which is in North Carolina, they have everything from a tailor to a jeweler to summer camp for kids, car detailing, a huge gym and swimming pool, and that's really just the beginning. So that's interesting. All over the place. At Zappos, they have a life coach on site if you need some general direction.
VELSHI: You'd wonder, Leigh, why, in a place we we've got above 9 percent unemployment, companies have to do this. But the reality is that most thinking people do not think we're going to be stuck at 9 percent unemployment five years from now or six years from now. At some point people are going to have choices as to who they work for and the ability to switch jobs, so why not put it into the culture now?
GALLAGHER: That's exactly true. That's a great point. Why not build it in now. But the other thing is, there's a real philosophy happening here. And that is, if you keep your employees happy, they will stay loyal and they will also be less distracted. They'll be happier. And that's something that sounds soft like it's just sort of a touchy-feely thing and it doesn't really show up in the numbers, but it actually does. We looked at the stock performance of these companies since we've been doing this list for the past 14 years and if you compare the numbers to the S&P or other broader market indices, these companies always outperform. So there is something to it.
VELSHI: Let's pick a couple of them that our viewers might be interested in. Wegmans. A lot of people deal with Wegmans. What kind of things do they offer?
GALLAGHER: Wegmans is great. It's just -- I mean we have a lot of supermarkets on our list, but Wegmans just goes above and beyond when it comes to fostering a really fun culture. It also cares about the wellness of its employees. They did a big initiative this year where I think 11,000 employees tried to eat five cups of vegetables a day and walk 10,000 steps a day. So, you know, that's a fun thing a company can offer, but so many people participated in it. They also have a lot of great percentages (ph) in there.
VELSHI: I'm not sure -- I'm not sure I consider that fun if CNN decided that I had to eat five cups of vegetables and walk 10,000 steps or whatever.
GALLAGHER: Not for everybody.
VELSHI: Let's talk about Google. This is a perennial because it becomes obvious. I mean when you go to work, when you go to any of Google's sort of campus or workplaces, it just looks cool. They've got lots of food and games and stuff like that.
What's neat about Google?
GALLAGHER: Well, they have everything from free breakfast, lunch and dinner, free laundry. They have a climbing wall in their gym. But Google did some interesting things this year. They went out and gave everybody a 10 percent raise because the company was doing so well. So that is the definition of a company that's good for work for. They also have an interesting perk that's called a peer bonus. So employees can basically award their colleagues $175 bonus on the spot. And they can do that as many times as they want per year. So, I mean it has to be approved by the managers.
VELSHI: Wow! Wow, that's great.
GALLAGHER: I know. So that's something that's clever and interesting and different and, you know, it makes you feel good about your colleagues and your company. And, you know, it's something that's pretty innovative out there.
VELSHI: Yes. Mentioning climbing walls, by the way. One of my favorite places to go shop is REI. This is a company that shows up a lot as well.
GALLAGHER: Yes, they've been on the list almost every year and this is a company that just really -- first it, obviously, it attracting an employee that's really drawn to the outdoors and the wilderness and so they give a lot of -- you get 50 to 70 percent off of full-priced clothes and gear. And you also get -- they have a really liberal sabbatical policy. So after 15 years, you can take a four-week paid sabbatical. But after that, they award them at every five years.
VELSHI: Wow!
GALLAGHER: So that's pretty -- that's pretty great. And, of course, a lot of those employees might go trekking somewhere --
VELSHI: Sure, with the gear that they get at a deep discount from the store.
GALLAGHER: Exactly. Exactly. They're opening a store here in New York, so you're going to have to come and check it out.
VELSHI: I would love that. Leigh, great to see you, as always. Thanks so much for being with us. And you've got to really go and check out this stuff in "Fortune" magazine, the best companies to work for. Chalk full of information.
Leigh Gallagher is the assistant managing editor at "Fortune."
And be sure to tune in to "Your Bottom Line" each Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m. Eastern on CNN. "Your $$$$$" airs Saturdays at 1:00 p.m. Eastern and Sundays at 3:00 p.m. We've got all your money, news and information covered.
All right, we've got breaking news for you. We've just learned that a second officer, a second police officer, has died in Miami. Two officers were shot while executing a search warrant. Officers shot and killed a suspect at the scene. Earlier we had a report that one officer had died, the other one was in surgery. Now we have confirmation two officers have now died while executing a high priority warrant with the U.S. Marshal Service in Miami. We'll get more information for you on that as soon as we've got it. These shots coming to you from our affiliate WSVN in Miami. A second officer has died.
Attorney General Eric Holder calls it one of the largest single- day operations against the mob in U.S. history. This morning, federal agents carried out raids in a major sweep across New York, New Jersey and Rhode Island. They arrested more than 100 alleged members of seven organized crime families. Charges range from murder and arson to extortion and narcotics trafficking and more arrests are expected. We'll have more for you on that in about 40 minutes.
After meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill today, Chinese President Hu Jintao will be welcomed in Chicago later this afternoon. He plans to spend two days in the windy city. Chicago's mayor, Richard Daley, calls the visit a really big deal. A mayoral dinner in Hu's honor is scheduled for tonight.
And it's getting more expensive to fly. "USA Today" reports Delta and United have raised their fares on most domestic fares. Expect to pay up to $20 extra for round trip on Delta, $10 if flying United. It didn't take long for the other carriers to do the same. They cite rising fuel costs.
And it was a hot ticket last night. The first state dinner for China in 13 years. Ed Henry goes over the guest list, maybe even the menu with us. He'll tell us exactly what he ate last night when we come back with "The Stakeout."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Chinese President Hu Jintao, who occupied most of our time on yesterday's show as part of a press conference, is on a three- day trip to the United States for meetings on trade, currency, North Korea. Last night the White House hosted the first state dinner for China in 13 years. Ed Henry has been all over this story since Hu's arrival.
Ed, we talked yesterday about the substance at that news conference with President Obama, but last night it was something entirely different. It was glitz and hobnobbing at the state dinner. What did it -- tell me about what happened.
ED HENRY, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, yes, I mean he had all kinds of stars. Barbra Streisand. People like Michelle Kwan, Vera Wang and Jackie Chan, the actor. I mean you always get that, you know, kind of star power oftentimes. But then you get the politicos as well, whether it's Henry Kissinger or -- take a look at basically the president's table had four presidents on it. You basically had President Obama, President Hu and former presidents Carter and Clinton all at one table with the secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, of course. I was thinking about it and I don't think there has been that much star power at one table in Washington since that time a few months ago, Ali, you came to dinner and ate alone.
VELSHI: That's very kind. I'll make sure never to come to Washington to eat alone.
HENRY: It's a little spin on -- you remember Thomas Jefferson. They said, there hadn't been that much brain power, I think, in White House since Thomas Jefferson had dined alone. You're kind of the modern -- it's just a little spin on that.
VELSHI: That's what it is. Yes.
HENRY: But the star power, the wattage, just the celebrities --
VELSHI: Well, it definitely was. I mean you could -- you saw the president and the first lady waiting there for when Hu arrive in the background. You could hear protesters. But he got a warm reception there. Today, he went to Capitol Hill and what was the reception for him like on The Hill?
HENRY: Yes. I mean, you know, folks are being polite. You know, you've got leaders in both parties, like Harry Reid on the Democratic side, and John Boehner on the Republican side, meeting with President Hu and putting out, you know, moderate statements saying, we've got differences, we'll try to work with them.
But interesting, they had both of those leaders skip the state dinner last night for different reasons. Harry Reid's office was saying, well, he was in Nevada. It was hard to get back. He had to travel all day. I mean the flight to Nevada's not really that long. It's a few hours. And it's interesting, he did a local TV interview, Harry Reid, where he called Hu Jintao a dictator, which probably wouldn't have been great dinner conversation. He walked that back a little bit and said he was just talking about the government differences between the U.S. and China.
And then Speaker Boehner also declined to go. His office basically said, look, he doesn't do a lot of these state dinners. The last time he did it was when Queen Elizabeth was here during the Bush administration for a state dinner. And, obviously, when you put them side by side, Queen Elizabeth and China, you know, in terms of controversy, you know, Queen Elizabeth doesn't usually spark a lot of concerns about human rights. At least the last time I checked. VELSHI: Now, you know, we've been showing people today that it's the 50th anniversary of JFK's inauguration.
HENRY: Yes.
VELSHI: It is the second anniversary of this president's inauguration. What are he and the -- the date is the second anniversary. Obviously he wasn't inaugurated on a Thursday.
HENRY: Yes. Right.
VELSHI: What are he and the first lady doing to mark the occasion?
HENRY: Well, interesting, the president's not doing a whole lot today in terms of public events. Later tonight he's going to be at the Kennedy Center and will make public remarks about what you just mentioned, which is JFK's -- the anniversary of his 50th inauguration, but we have seen a lot of the first lady today. She did her healthy food eating initiative today where she announced the latest installment, which is Wal-Mart now stepped up and saying they're going to help with this effort. They're going to kind of force their internal food folks who do their internal label to have less sugar, less salt, et cetera. A good move forward for kids and adults, everybody really.
And she came back to the White House and surprised some of the tourists who were here, just in a normal line. She dropped in to the Blue Room -- one of the rooms -- just to hang out with the tourists and say hello and kind of use that to celebrate the second anniversary.
Funny, I talked to David Axelrod a couple days ago about this. The president's senior advisor is about to leave and said, you're coming on about this second anniversary, what's going through your mind? And he said he remembers being on the platform with outgoing President Bush. And they were waiting for the oath of office to be administered to Barack Obama. And President Bush looked at Axelrod, and said, Axelrod -- he didn't use his first name -- he said Axelrod, you better enjoy this. It's going to be one hell of a ride.
And Axelrod said, look, President Bush was right. It's been -- there have been a lot of ups and downs from this administration. They've had some successes, certainly some challenges. In the next two years maybe just as bumpy as he heads into his re-election battle. But the bottom line is, you know, it's gone by pretty darn fast.
VELSHI: It certainly has. You've been there the whole time. Ed, thanks very much. Thanks for being there for us every day.
Ed Henry, our senior White House correspondent with the Stakeout.
Well, it's the stuff of blockbuster Hollywood firms, but it's playing out right now in Brooklyn. Forget renting "Good Fellas," we got the real deal after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Happening now. More than 100 accused mobsters are under arrest after raids today in New York, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. The Justice Department says that arrests targeted seven organized crime families. Charges include murder, extortion, drug trafficking, gambling, and racketeering.
Breaking news in Miami. Police officials say that two Miami-Dade officers have been shot and killed while serving a warrant. One of the officers died at the scene. We've just learned from the mayor that the second officer died in surgery. A suspect was also killed at the scene.
In Washington, Chinese President Hu Jintao has been speaking at a business forum at this hour. He met with congressional leaders earlier today where he faced questions about human rights, North Korea, and other contentious subjects. President Hu arrives in Chicago later this afternoon, where he'll attend a gala dinner with business leaders.
Right now in America, there are more than three million people without homes. In Detroit, there are at least 32,000 homeless. And in today's Big I, we with want to tell you about a little idea with huge implications. A coat that not only keeps the homeless warm, but also transforms into a sleeping bag.
Right now, we've got the designer of the coat, 21-year-old design student Veronica Scott. She's joining us from Madison Heights, Michigan.
Veronica, thank you for being with us. I've been sort of so excited by your invention that I'm just so pleased that people are doing things to help out the homeless. And I got some criticism on Facebook for touting it as much as it is, because in truth, you haven't done anything to solve the homeless problem, but that wasn't the goal. You set out to design something using simple technology to help people who are out there and have to sleep outside.
Tell us about your invention.
VERONICA SCOTT, PRODUCT DESIGN STUDENT: Well, thank you, I'm very excited to be here as well. So, the coat actually is not the highlight of the whole empowerment plan system. The coat prevents body heat from escaping during the day as the person wears it and then transforms into a self-heated sleeping bag at night that's also waterproof.
But the interesting part is that the whole system around the coat, how we're hiring a group of amazing homeless women and they're in a shelter system, so they're getting full-time hosing, a full-time meal plan, and a full-time shelter and pay for them and their children to create these coats for someone else that really needs it.
VELSHI: And by the way, you've created something -- this Big I segment is often about innovation and ideas. You took sort of existing technology -- something that's out there. You combined wool and Tyvek, which everyone's familiar with. They make fireproof suits out of it, construction material. It's a barrier -- it's sort of a heat and moisture barrier.
SCOTT: Yes, it is. It's a great heat and moisture -- used in housing construction and then in combination with wool are the quilted nylon we've received from Carhartt, as insulation, it should store body heat very well.
VELSHI: OK, so you started this on your own. And you used your own money. And I guess at some point you realized that if this is going to be scalable, you're going to have to get somebody else involved. You mentioned Carhartt. Tell me how that relationship came about.
SCOTT: Well, this whole project began as a school project for the College Creative Studies. I'm a product design student there. And it began as a class project. And then it got so involved and so intense that I couldn't drop it.
And then after months of working on it, creating four prototypes, finally I had a close friend of mine and also a very great person at the school give me a contact with Carhartt. And with Carhartt's help, we've been able to at least start manufacturing, start producing the coats and actually get a space to begin the teaching process and the jobs that we'll be giving to people.
VELSHI: OK. So you're getting this raw material. You are hiring people to be able to make these. How many would you like to produce?
SCOTT: Well, for this first pilot, we'd to produce 25 with the women and possibly 25 more with Carhartt to create a training video next week.
VELSHI: All right. Well, we're going to a keep a close eye on your progress on this. We thank you for what you're doing. And thanks for veering off of your normal path to dedicate yourself to this.
Veronica Scott is design student at the College for Creative Studies in Madison Heights, Michigan.
To check out the empowered plan and the Element Survival Coat -- two parts of it that she was talking about -- head to my blog. I put all the Big I information there -- CNN.com/ali.
Well, a government falling apart. Two troops and tanks outside of government buildings. We're going to take you to where that's happening. Globe Trekking, coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: Deadly floodwaters are receding in Brazil, but the death toll continues to climb. Officials describe the flooding and the mudslides as the worse to hit the country in decades. These remarkable pictures show the raging water, the power of that water. Look at that. At least 765 people have been killed since the disaster was triggered by torrential rains last week. One of the hardest hit areas is Rio de Janeiro state. Numerous homes have been destroyed by rivers of mud. More than 200 people are missing and official predict the death toll will climb much higher.
OK, the political crisis in Lebanon is growing at an alarming rate. Police have taken up positions around the government palace and other buildings. This comes after the government of Prime Minister Saad Hariri collapsed earlier this week, after ministers of the militant Hezbollah group pulled out of the unity cabinet. Hariri has stayed on as caretaker Prime Minister. He spoke out on the crisis today. His speech came as Turkey, Syria, and Qatar announced they were suspending efforts to broker a new government.
And nearby in Iraq, more deadly bombings. At least 118 people have been killed in attacks this week, 450 people wounded. The latest attack today in Karbala, south of Baghdad. Explosions targeted Shiite pilgrims -- 32 were killed, 150 people were wounded. In another attack in Baqubah, a suicide car bombing targeted a police checkpoint and killed at least four people. And the deadliest attack was on Tuesday. A suicide bombing targeting a recruitment center in Takrit, killing 65 people and wounding 160 people.
Let me bring you up to speed on some of our top stories this hour. Attorney General Eric Holder calls it one of the largest single-day operations against the mob in U.S. history. This morning, federal agents carried out raids in a major sweep across New York, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. They arrested more than 100 alleged members of seven organized crime families. Charges range from murder to arson to extortion and narcotics trafficking. More arrests are expected.
A tough and tense day for Miami's law enforcement community. Two Miami-Dade police officers are dead after being shot executing an arrest warrant. The department called it a high-profile warrant that had the officers working with the U.S. Marshal's fugitive task force. At least one suspected gunman at the residence was shot and killed by Miami-Dade police officers.
Banking giant JPMorgan Chase is admitting it overcharged more than 4,000 active-duty Military personnel on their home loans and that it mistakenly foreclosed on 14 homes. The action violates rules on the books to protect Military personnel. JPMorgan said it is mailing out $2 million in refunds, and it so far has resolved 13 of the 14 accidental foreclosures.
Congressman Cohen of Tennessee stands by his Nazi comparison. Find out exactly what he told CNN's John King in your political update right after this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VELSHI: It is time now for a CNN Political Update. CNN chief national correspondent John King joins me from the Political Desk in Washington.
John, Representative Cohen is standing by his inflammatory words. Tell our viewers who may not know about what he is talking about.
JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: He is standing by them, Ali, though he is twisting his explanation just a little bit today.
Steve Cohen went to floor of the House of Representatives and said the Republicans are like Goebbels. You remember Goebbels, he was the big Nazi propagandist who incited the German people against the Jews back in World War II. Steve Cohen says he was trying to make the point that in his view, Republicans are lying about the details of the health care plan.
He came on "JOHN KING USA" last night and he defended his position saying he needed to do this, he needed to be tough, said he wasn't trying to call the Republicans Nazis. But he's issued a new statement this afternoon saying, "I regret that anyone in the Jewish community, my Republican colleagues or anyone else was offended by the portrayal of my comments. My comments were not directed toward any group or people but the false message and specifically the method by which it has been delivered."
So he keeps saying he believes the Republicans are not telling the truth, but he has backed off a bit today, Ali.
You know, we've also learned some new details on the organizational flow chart of the Obama reelection campaign and we have a new poll that suggest just why the White House is up and running. A Quinnipiac poll in the state of Ohio, a key battleground state: Does the president deserve to be reelected? Yes, 48 percent, no 44 percent. So a very delicate balance there in the key state of Ohio.
The president needs to get to work there. What about Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown? He's also up in 2012, his numbers a little better. Forty-five percent say yes, 30 percent say no, but a big 25 percent say they don't know.
And Ali, as you know, this is the 50th anniversary of the JFK inaugural, it's also the 30th anniversary of when Ronald Reagan took the oath to first become president of the United States, and we have some new polling at CNN. We asked them to rate former presidents, to give them their perspective in history. John F. Kennedy, 85 percent of Americans approve of John F. Kennedy when they look back at the Kennedy presidency; 72 percent, Bill Clinton; Ronald Reagan 68 percent.
The list goes on, go to the Political Ticker if you want to read it all through, but a good day to reflect on the legacy of both presidents Kennedy and Reagan, my friend.
VELSHI: All right, John, as always, pleasure to see you. Thanks so much.
Your next update from "The Best Political Team on Television" is just one hour away.
Well, just days after hosting the Golden Globes, comedian Ricky Gervais sits down with Piers Morgan as premier week continues. It's Gervais' first TV interview since those controversial jokes at the expense of Hollywood's A-listers at Sunday night's award show.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
RICKY GERVAIS, COMEDIAN: They hired me for a job and if they didn't want me, they shouldn't have hired me.
PIERS MORGAN, HOST, "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT": Someone asked me, you know, what do you think; as a fellow Brit on TV in America, what do you think would happen with Ricky. I said, well, it is a bit like inviting a hammerhead shark to dinner and then when he eats all the guests, you start complaining. I mean, you kind of know what you're going to get.
GERVAIS: But that's one thing, but also, as I said, I don't think that I did anything wrong. I honestly -- you know, those were light jibes at these people, and I'm sure they have got a sense of
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VELSHI: Piers' premier week wraps up tomorrow night with one of the biggest stars in Hollywood, George Clooney. That's "PIERS MORGAN TONIGHT" every night at 9:00 Eastern.
Well it used to be just a little party hosted by Robert Redford, now it is one of the hottest events of the year. We'll take you live to Utah, the most happening state in the country right now.
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VELSHI: Well, it used to be a small independent film festival, but not anymore. Sundance kicks off today and it has become a pretty star-studded affair. It features dozens of independent films.
"SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" host Brooke Anderson is in Park City, Utah, one of the toughest gigs at CNN. I'm not sure how she always draws the short straw and has to go out there.
Brooke, beautiful scenery, as always. A place where they're happy to have snow and cold. Tell me what's on the agenda for the next few days.
BROOKE ANDERSON, HOST, HLN'S "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Well, about 200 films, Ali, will be shown in the Sundance Film Festival. And of course, those are feature length films, shorts, documentaries, the whole nine yards.
But yes, Sundance was named after founder Robert Redford's character in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid." And since he founded it back in the '80s, the festival has really grown, really flourished. Hit movies like "Napoleon Dynamite," "Little Miss Sunshine," "Reservoir Dogs," "The Blair Witch Project" all were discovered here.
And Ali, you mentioned that it is a star-studded affair each and every year. No doubt that is certainly true this year. Demi Moore, John C. Riley, Toby McGuire, Kevin Spacey, just a few of the stars who will be bundling up in their snow gear to hit this affair, hit this event, which is really considered around the world as the place to be this time of year, if you love film.
Check it out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JENNIFER ANISTON, ACTRESS: Hi, how are you.
ANDERSON (voice-over): Jennifer Aniston's done Sundance.
ANISTON: It's exciting. It's an honor.
ANDERSON: Robert Downey Jr. too.
ROBERT DOWNEY JR., ACTOR: It's super important. You know, believe me.
ANDERSON: James Franco came last year, and he's coming back again.
JAMES FRANCO, ACTOR: It's just an honor.
ANDERSON: Some major stars will be joining him in snowy Park City, Utah. Pierce Brosnan returns to the festival playing a charismatic preacher in "Salvation Boulevard."
(VIDEO CLIP, "SALVATION BOULEVARD")
ANDERSON: Ed Helms premiers his new comedy "Cedar Rapids" with John C. Reilly.
(VIDEO CLIP, "CEDAR RAPIDS")
ANDERSON: Demi Moore has got two films in the festival; so does Elizabeth Banks.
(VIDEO CLIP, "THE DETAILS")
ANDERSON: In "The Details," she stars opposite Toby McGuire and Laura Linney.
(VIDEO CLIP, "THE DETAILS")
ANDERSON: The cast hopes someone bites on their film. It's up for sale at Sundance, along with dozens of other movies.
And Oprah Winfrey could be one of the buyers. She's looking for product for her new own network.
(VIDEO CLIP, "BECOMING CHAZZ")
ANDERSON: Oprah already snapped up the documentary "Becoming Chazz" before it premiers at Sundance. The movie follows Chazz Bono, who's mom is Cher, as he transitions from female to male.
And there are hints Oprah may fly to Sundance to check out another documentary --
(VIDEO CLIP, "SING YOUR SONG")
ANDERSON: -- about singer and civil rights activist Harry Belafonte.
Celebrities do flock to Sundance, but when all is said and done, the festival's really about finding and nurturing unknown films and undiscovered talent.
(VIDEO CLIP, "YOU CAN COUNT ON ME")
ANDERSON: Talent like Mark Ruffalo. He got his big break in the Sundance movie "You Can Count On Me" in 2000.
MARK RUFFALO, ACTOR: My career started at Sundance. It's just a huge support for us and we would be lost without it. It would be really sad if we didn't have Sundance.
ANDERSON: Not to worry, Mark. It looks like Sundance will be around for a while.
This year's festival gets under way Thursday night.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: And Ali, over the course of the ten-day festival, tens of thousands of festival-goers are expected to flock here to Main Street in small snowy Park City, Utah to take part in the festivities, rub elbows with the stars.
I'm really looking forward to a lot of movies, actually, including "The Detail" starring Elizabeth Banks, Toby McGuire; "Cedar Rapids," that's the one with Ed Helms, John C. Reilly. Demi Moore has two movies here, "Margin Call," "Another Happy Day."
So everyone's really excited, everybody's getting into town tonight. It officially kicks off this evening.
VELSHI: OK, one of the reasons why if you can't ever make it and you need me to fill in for you, this would be interesting, because really a lot of business is being done there, Brooke. You've got films, as you said, where Oprah is shopping for them. Some people are shopping for content, some people are trying to sell their content. Others have sealed that deal already and they're looking for promotion. And then the back drop for all this is all the business that is getting done in Park City for the restaurants and the bars.
Tell me a bit about the money side of it.
ANDERSON: Well, you mentioned the buying and the selling of the films. A lot of wheeling and dealing is already going on. A lot of money, millions of dollars is going to exchange hands. There's a lot of stake. There's a lot at stake. There's a lot of high pressure negotiations that go on here at Sundance behind closed doors, at cocktail parties, midnight screenings, that sort of thing.
And historically, Ai, the festival has had a major impact economically on the state of Utah. In fact, Utah's Bureau of Economic and Business Research estimates that it has supported more than 1,500 jobs and, you know, has generated more than $60 million.
So, it's not just for filmmakers, the stars of the movies, but also for those people who populate Utah. It's also beneficial for them if they can handle and stomach the traffic and all the people that kind of take over their city for awhile.
VELSHI: Now, is there anywhere for regular people to participate, or is everybody there either covering it or buying or selling?
ANDERSON: No, absolutely. People can come and actually attend the festival. You can go to the Sundance Film Festival website and figure out ways to purchase tickets. They make it pretty easy for people who just love film to be a part of it, and they have shuttle services all around the city because there's not a lot of parking at the theaters.
So yes, it is easy if you just look up the website. Robert Redford wants to make this a community experience for filmmakers and film lovers alike.
VELSHI: Brooke, great to see you, as always. Enjoy yourself there and don't work too hard.
Brooke Anderson in Park City, Utah.
