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Congressman Anthony Weiner to Resign; Defense Begins in Casey Anthony Trial; The Banks Own My Block

Aired June 16, 2011 - 12:00   ET

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

SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: I'm Suzanne Malveaux. Want to get you up to speed.

Breaking news now. Two hours from now, disgraced New York Congressman Anthony Weiner is expected to call it quits. He has come under intense pressure from his Democratic colleagues over a sexing scandal involving several women and the lies he repeatedly told following that.

Let's get you to Capitol Hill for the details on Weiner's planned resignation.

Our CNN senior congressional correspondent, Dana Bash, she is joining us.

And Dana, any word on what we can expect from Weiner's news conference?

DANA BASH, CNN SENIOR CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, we expect him to say publicly what he has told Democratic leaders and friends privately, which is, as we've been reporting since this morning, that he is going to resign. You know, the last time Anthony Weiner came before the microphones, he was very, very upset, very apologetic, and that was the first time that he actually admitted that his Twitter account was not hacked, as he initially said, and that he, in fact, had sent these lewd photographs of himself.

So, that is what we expect. And this is, Suzanne -- I think it's really -- you can't overstate how much this is a relief to his colleagues here, to the leadership here on Capitol Hill, who really, they say, didn't want to go public with their push for him to resign, but they felt that they had to this past Saturday, after their private pleas simply did not work. They felt that was too much of a distraction politically at a time when Democrats felt that they were doing much better than they had since the last election on issues like Medicare and other things, and that's why they just wanted this to end, that's why there's a sigh of relief today.

MALVEAUX: And Dana, I understand that he reached out to Nancy Pelosi and others. What did he say to them? Did he explain how he came to this conclusion?

BASH: Unclear if he explained exactly how, because this is a big difference, a big change, because, Suzanne, we talked last hour about the fact that in the last couple of weeks -- and we should mention that this is a saga that has been going on for three weeks now -- he was very defiant.

One congressman who talked to him told me that he was "dug in," he was not going to resign at all. But as more and more pictures began to come out, and his leadership said it was time to go, it was pretty clear it was hard for him to stay.

How did he inform the Democratic leadership? Very interesting and quite odd of a story.

It was yesterday, at the White House. There was a White House picnic for members of Congress and their families. And Steve Israel, who is his fellow Democrat from New York, also the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, he got the call from Anthony Weiner telling him officially, it's time, I'm going to resign, I've made the decision.

And then Israel went and found the Democratic leader in the House, Nancy Pelosi. The two of them got on the phone together. I'm told that they sort of went off to get some privacy near a tree so that other people didn't know what was going on. And Weiner explained to them that --he said that he was remorseful, he said that he was very sorry, not as broken up and highly emotional as some people who I talked to say that he had been over the last few weeks, but much more with it, if you will, than he had been after he made this decision.

MALVEAUX: And Dana, has there been any reaction at all from Democrats or Republicans to this news that he will step down?

BASH: Very interesting. You heard Kate Bolduan report just within the last hour that Nancy Pelosi will not go there. She will not talk about this until Weiner himself speaks.

But we do have -- as far as I can tell, the first statement from one of his colleagues. It's Nita Lowey of New York. She just released this statement, and I'll read it to you.

She said, "There is life after Congress for Anthony Weiner, and I hope he devotes himself to repairing the damage he has caused to his personal life."

Now, Nita Lowey is, again, a fellow Democrat from New York. She actually is somebody who had been close with him. She went to his wedding to Huma Abedin last July, and she is also somebody, Suzanne, I was told last week privately urged him to resign. She was very unhappy. She had some harsh words for him privately, and said, look, you have just got to go, enough is enough.

MALVEAUX: And Dana, how is his seat going to be filled? Is this going to be effective immediately that he leaves?

BASH: We're not sure what he's going to say. Presumably, he will say he is going to be leaving effective immediately. Then the next step is a special election, and that is to be determined and to be set by the governor of New York. We don't know when that will be. That will be up to him to decide. But that will just be a temporary thing.

And then, of course, the next regular election is in 2012. And what will be very interesting is to see whether or not this particular seat -- he represents the Ninth District of New York -- whether or not that completely goes away, because New York, because of redistricting, is going to lose two congressional seats. So, one of the subplots that's been going on here, Suzanne, is that some of his colleagues from New York have been reluctant to say anything publicly, because they actually stand to gain if he's gone, because it's easier for the powers that be, if you will, to get rid of his seat and not theirs.

MALVEAUX: OK. All right. Dana Bash, thank you so much. Appreciate it.

(NEWSBREAK)

Here's your chance to "Talk Back" on the big story of the day. Today's question: Should Anthony Weiner resign?

Carol Costello joins us from Washington with more.

I guess some people feel like, you know, maybe he could have survived this.

CAROL COSTELLO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Maybe so. But, jeez, finally, Congressman Anthony Weiner decides to resign.

Democrats are relieved. And maybe all of you are, too.

As House Speaker John Boehner said, it's been a distraction. Distraction? That may be the understatement of the year.

We've been obsessed. At a time Americans want their politicians to create jobs, half-nude Weiner pictures keep on coming, and the jokes keep flying.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, CBS'S "THE LATE SHOW WITH DAVID LETTERMAN": And today is a being day in the Weiner household. Anthony Weiner is being reunited with his wife.

Well, that should go pretty well, I think.

And Weiner asked that the people respect his privacy. And well, I guess that really wasn't a concern when he was texting photos of his junk. No, I don't think it was.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

COSTELLO: OK. Let's put aside the jokes. There is another way to look at this, really.

Sexting is a part of life. I bet you know someone who does it, although you'd never know it, because they would never tell you.

Lisa Bloom, who wrote a book on "Straight Talk" -- the book is called "Straight Talk," actually -- says we're obsessed by politicians' personal lives to the detriment of our country. Bloom asks, "How many imperfect, but smart, qualified people decided today they could never run for public office?"

And then there are those politicians stained with scandals who remain in office: Democratic Congressman Barney Frank, Republican Senator David Vitter, and President Bill Clinton. He still has a voice despite his dalliance in the Oval Office.

So, the "Talk Back" question today: Should Congressman Weiner resign?

Facebook/CarolCNN. I'll read your comments later this hour -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you, Carol.

Here's a look at what's ahead this hour "On the Rundown."

First, almost three weeks into a growing scandal over sexting and lewd photos, Anthony Weiner is resigning from Congress. We're going to take a look at the district that he represents.

And then, Casey Anthony's lawyers try to convince jurors she did not murder her 2-year-old daughter Caylee. A new potential witness is a convicted kidnapper.

And al Qaeda appoints a new leader. We're going to explore what that might mean in the fight against terrorism.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: New York Congressman Anthony Weiner to resign. That announcement coming in about an hour and 45 minutes or so.

Already, there is reaction in New York to the announcement. Let's see what folks have to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's a very good thing. Very good thing for him to be resigning, because when something like that -- with all the problems of the world, and all the things we're trying to solve, and we're taken away from these problems by some stupid idiot who tries to do something, I can't understand it.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm very happy he's resigning.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Did you vote for him?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I did, yes. And I didn't like him -- he's not quite -- there's something wrong with him. And I don't think a person who has something wrong with him should represent us. UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What do you think this means for his future in politics?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: For his future? He's a smart man, so maybe he can straighten himself out. But he does not belong in politics right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: CNN's Carl Azuz is with us to talk more about the New York Democrat, as well as the district that he represents.

Who are the folks that he is representing in Washington?

CARL AZUZ, CNN STUDENT NEWS: We'll start with his district, Suzanne.

Congressman Weiner represents the Ninth District in New York State. That covers parts of Brooklyn and Queens in New York City. It's considered solidly Democratic.

Weiner was first elected to the House in 1998. That was after his political mentor, then-Congressman Chuck Schumer, decided to run for the Senate.

Weiner has been a reliable liberal voice for the district since then. He basically ran unopposed in '06 and '08, and he won by 22 points over his Republican opponent last year. That helped him avoid the GOP tidal wave that swept over the House.

And as a politician, Congressman Weiner has fully embraced social media sites such as Facebook, such as Twitter, which ultimately, Suzanne, seems to have done him more harm than good.

MALVEAUX: And tell us a little bit about what his life was like before he entered Congress, political life.

AZUZ: It was pretty much politics from the word "go" at college. He graduated from the State University of New York Plattsburgh and worked as an aide to Chuck Schumer from 1985 until 1991.

And a year later, Weiner served on the New York City Council. Throughout his time in office, he's found himself drawn back to New York, the city he calls home. He ran unsuccessfully in the Democratic mayoral primary race in '05, but many observers now feel that this scandal has ruined any chance of him being elected mayor in 2013.

MALVEAUX: And there are still some questions, right, Carl, about whether or not his district is even going to exist?

AZUZ: That would be an irony of ironies, Suzanne. I mean, the 2010 Census is showing that New York will lose two congressional seats because of slow population growth. One of those seats could come from the New York City area.

MALVEAUX: All right. Carl, thank you very much. Appreciate it. AZUZ: A pleasure, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Well, the defense gets its turn in the Casey Anthony murder trial. We're going to talk defense strategy, and also what to expect in the case with attorney and author Lisa Bloom.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) OBAMA:

MALVEAUX: The defense case got under way today in the Casey Anthony murder trial. Anthony is accused of killing her 2-year-old daughter.

Well, the first witnesses called by the defense today were a crime scene investigator and an FBI forensics expert.

We want to get some insight on what we can expect as the defense case unfolds.

Lisa Bloom is an attorney and author of "The New York Times" bestseller "Think: Straight Talk for Women to Stay Smart in a Dumbed- Down World."

She joins us from Los Angeles.

And good to see you.

First of all, defense lawyers say they want to question a convicted felon who served prison time for kidnapping, claiming somehow that he is linked to Casey Anthony's father, George.

What is this about?

LISA BLOOM, ATTORNEY: Yes. It's a fascinating development, isn't it, Suzanne? It's the kind of thing that you think only happens in the movies, right? Surprise witnesses after three years of background discovery and investigation of this case. And now this new person is revealed at the 11th hour.

So, the defense says that this man, who is a convicted kidnapper, had four telephone calls with George Anthony, Casey's father, the day before Caylee was reported missing. So that would certainly make everyone scratch their heads and say, well, why on earth would he be communicating with this guy?

MALVEAUX: Right.

BLOOM: We don't know what the testimony is going to be, we don't know if the judge is going to allow it. But George Anthony has released a statement through his lawyer saying, I never spoke to this guy by phone, electronically, or any other means. I don't know who he is.

So the plot thickens. And we really don't know who that's going to turn out.

MALVEAUX: Lisa, do you think this is part of a larger strategy to portray George Anthony as the bad guy, this monster who sexually abused his own daughter, covered up this accidental drowning of the 2- year-old?

Is that what's behind this?

BLOOM: Definitely. And we know that from the opening statement.

Casey Anthony has a very high-risk defense strategy. Not only does she say she didn't do it, she didn't kill her daughter, she didn't even accidentally kill her daughter, but she says her own father, George Anthony, did that. Her attorney alleged in the opening that he molested Casey as a little girl, and that Caylee, the little baby, drowned in the pool, and that the father was there, and the father was basically covering it up all of this time, and Casey was covering up for her father.

So now it's time for the defense to prove up their case. The defense doesn't have an obligation to prove a case ordinarily, but when you make a claim like that in opening statement, the jury is going to expect you to put on some evidence. So now it's time for them to do it. It's time for them to put up or shut up, effectively.

MALVEAUX: Do we have any idea what kind of evidence they're going to present?

BLOOM: Well, they may call George Anthony back to the stand. Now, he already testified for the prosecution. He was already cross- examined a little bit. The judge isn't going to allow a repetition of that testimony, but the defense could call him and ask him brand-new questions.

And, of course, the big $65,000 question is, will Casey Anthony herself take the stand? I think probably not.

I think her attorney would advise against it. But it's her right to take the stand if she wants to, even over her attorney's advice. And she would be the one I think primarily to offer up that testimony and offer up that evidence. Other than that, I don't see how they are going to do it.

MALVEAUX: And Lisa, do they have any burden at all to kind of dispute what has happened, where people say she has lied and lied and all of these stories aren't true? Is there something that they have got to do now to say, look, you know, still believe her anyway that she is not the murderer?

BLOOM: Yes, it's a great question. No defendant in an American criminal trial has any burden of proof whatsoever. It always remains 100 percent with the prosecution to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt.

But once the prosecution has put on a case, and the judge says the prosecution has put on enough of a case here that it can't be dismissed -- in other words, it's going to the jury -- you know, in the non-legal sense, yes, the defense has to do something now because this case is going to go to the jury. I think the prosecution put in a strong case. And so the defense has to do something to undercut all of the evidence that the jury has heard.

The jury has heard especially evidence of computer experts, that before Caylee went missing, somebody in the home was searching chloroform, death, head injuries. I mean, that's very, very damaging, although they couldn't link it directly to Casey Anthony.

Then there's all of her lies, which look very mysterious, her getting a tattoo which translates into "beautiful life." I mean, this is very incriminating stuff. So, the defense, I think, has to put on something to undercut all of this mountain of prosecution evidence. Otherwise, their client is going to be convicted.

MALVEAUX: All right. Lisa Bloom, thank you very much. We'll be watching closely. Thank you.

BLOOM: Thank you.

MALVEAUX: Well, he is the new face of al Qaeda. Bin Laden's former top deputy is the terrorist group's new leader. We're going to talk with an expert about what that means for the fight against terror.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: We're following the developing story, breaking news. Congressman Anthony Weiner to resign. That resignation coming in about an hour and a half or so out of New York.

Also weighing in on this is New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. He is in Albany, New York, at a press conference. He was addressing a number of issues, and he was asked about his reaction to the congressman's resignation.

Let's take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MAYOR MICHAEL BLOOMBERG (I), NEW YORK: He's got to talk to his family and decide what's right for the country and what's right for his family and what's right for himself and make a decision. And I think the fact that it looks like he is addressing the issue today, one way or another -- and I don't know what he is going to do -- is a positive step. You just can't let this go on and on. It's become a diversion away from all of the important things that this country has to deal with.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MALVEAUX: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, weighing in on this.

I also want to bring in our senior political editor, Mark Preston, who has been working the story. He joins us live from Washington. And Mark, it was really interesting to watch Bloomberg respond to this, because Anthony Weiner, he was the one who a lot of people saw in New York as potentially the front-runner for Bloomberg's job as New York mayor.

What do we make of Weiner's future now?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Well, you know, that's a great question. And it's a question we really can't answer right now, Suzanne, because we have seen politicians embroiled in sex scandals who have come out on top after a few years. Look at our own former president, Bill Clinton.

Of course, a very high-profile case. And in fact, he was almost -- was impeached by the House and, of course, he was almost convicted by the Senate. But Bill Clinton was able to weather the storm and has gone on to be quite a great ambassador to the world, and still an elder statesman in the party.

Now, Anthony Weiner, of course, has to get through the next couple weeks, the next couple months, try to get this back together with his family. The question is, why did he wait this long and drag it out?

And it was very frustrating to Democratic Party leaders. They wanted to see him step down on his own last week, which he refused to do. And that's why we saw this weekend, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic National Committee chairwoman, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, and Steve Israel, who oversees the campaign efforts for House Democrats, calling on him to resign.

Now, I will tell you, in talking to Democrats and Republicans over the past couple of hours just to get their take and feel the temperature of where they think the story is going, or what's going to happen, and really, for Democrats, it really sums it up in what one official said to me, Suzanne: "A collective sigh of relief all across the party."

And the reason being is it was really becoming a distraction not only for the 2012 election for House Democrats and Senate Democrats, but it was also becoming a distraction, Suzanne, for the president's own re-election.

MALVEAUX: Sure. I mean, it was interesting, Mark, when you think about it, that you had President Obama weighing in on this, saying if it was him, he would resign. That was quite an extraordinary statement he made.

Was there ever a point, Mark, where it looked like Weiner would stand a chance of surviving? Because it started off, people looked at it, and they didn't really think it was a big deal, these lewd tweets that surfaced. Could he have survived this potentially?

PRESTON: He potentially could have survived it if he had waited -- or rather, I should say, if we had not continued to see more shoes dropping. And look, just look what happened yesterday, Suzanne, when we had an ex-porn star go out in front of the microphones with Gloria Allred -- and, of course, whenever Gloria Allred is going to be standing next to a woman, and it involves a sex scandal, you know you are in trouble.

Well, this porn star goes out and says that Anthony Weiner -- accused him of telling her to lie about the scandal. So it's one thing to have that one picture go out on Twitter a few weeks ago and kind of raise the eyebrows, but, Suzanne, it just seem to be like -- it kept on building and building and building.

And he was so insistent that he was going to stay in office, there was, I think, a remote possibility that he probably could have stayed in office if it was only that one picture. But look where we are now -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: OK. Mark, thank you very much. We appreciate you following all the details there. And obviously, we will be looking at 2:00 Eastern, for Congress Weiner's statement of resignation.

Want to go to our congressional correspondent, Kate Bolduan, who is on the Hill. And I understand there is more congressional reaction to this announcement even before he steps down?

KATE BOLDUAN, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, members are starting to get the news that he is going to be making this announcement to step down. We've been able to speak with some of them. And I was able to speak just a short time ago with a fellow New Yorker, Republican congressman Peter King. He has known Anthony Weiner for quite a long time. He acknowledged they have not always have the best relationship but that they have always been able to work together.

I asked him for his reaction, Suzanne, and he says Anthony Weiner made the right decision that he hopes that he gets the treatment that he needs. As I mentioned -- Peter King mentioned, they have not always had the best relationship. They've been known, Anthony Weiner and Peter King, have been known for having epic battles, if you will, on the House floor. Very passionately fighting over issues. One you will probably remember over a health care bill having to do with health care for 9/11 first responders.

And I asked Congressman King is he going to miss the fight? Listen here.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. PETER KING (R), NEW YORK: I actually think confrontation can be good as long as it's done in the open and at each other and not just sending out mail or targeting people. So, whatever Anthony Weiner and I did, we did it, as far as our fights, were in public. And in the end, we ended up basically agreeing, I mean, the 9/11 health care bill, which people saw us shouting at each other, fact is, in the end, we were able to get that bill through and we worked on it together.

(END VIDEO CLIP) BOLDUAN: Congressman King, I think as many people have said and will say, he said this has been a tragic, tragic experience for obviously Anthony Weiner, especially his family. He said in the end, he said this decision to resign is a good decision for himself, for his family, and he said especially for the Congress. As I keep hearing from members as I've been getting reaction, members say there are many important things that are ready and they need to be talking about, and it's a good thing they will be able to start having that conversation again, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Kate, not surprising the Republicans came out and called for his resignation, and did not support him. But it did seem to be surprising that he lost Democratic support so early on. Did that strike you?

BOLDUAN: It did strike me. Especially, I think you really -- we were really just more surprised about the coordinated effort that we did see come out over the weekend of the minority leader, the Democratic leader, Nancy Pelosi, as well as other leadership, including Steve Israel coming out to say, OK, time's up. It's time to resign. Having that kind of coordinated effort, that big pressure from leadership was a little surprising as we saw that happen.

But it sent a pretty good signal. I will tell you from one Democratic source that's familiar with the -- Nancy Pelosi's thinking, told by this source that she knew, she was pretty confident that the day was coming. It was just what day would it be and how long would it take for him to reach this decision.

MALVEAUX: OK. Thanks for that insight, Kate. Appreciate it. The back story.

BOLDUAN: Of course.

MALVEAUX: Well, a drop in foreclosures, but the housing market is still suffering. We will show you how foreclosure are taking a toll on one New Jersey town.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: The top deputy to Osama bin Laden is the new leader of al Qaeda. In a statement posted on Jihadist Web sites today , al Qaeda says Ayman al-Zawahiri was appointed as the leader to honor the legacy of bin Laden. But some terrorism experts say he will have a tough time following in his footsteps.

Mark Baker spent 17 years in the CIA in counterterror and counter insurgency operations. He is the co-founder of the company Diligence. And he joins us from New York.

Thanks for being here. First of all, give us a sense of what this means in the fight against terrorism? Does this put us in a stronger position or a weaker position against al Qaeda?

MARK BAKER, CO-FOUNDER, DILIGENCE: Well, the unfortunate reality is it doesn't affect the way we have to carry out operations against al Qaeda. Because al-Zawahiri has been around for a long time, well over a decade. He has been essentially playing the number two to bin Laden's Lex Luther. So, we have known all about him. He's Egyptian- born. He's a doctor by training before he became radicalized.

Some give him credit for radicalizing - I mean, if credit is the word -- for radicalizing bin Laden in the early days as bin Laden was making the formation toward the al Qaeda organization. But underneath, under his leadership, there will really won't be that many changes. It's not like a corporate shake-up of any sort.

MALEAUX: Right. Is he stronger or tougher than bin Laden? Is he more of a threat to us?

BAKER: Well, I don't think he is more of a threat to us. I mean, the threat really comes from -- if you want to call it, the mid- management, the mid-level of the organization where theoperationsal commanders are, the members of the military commission and the bomb makers, the people that are actually on the street making the decisions for operational activity.

He is very committed. There's no doubt about that. So, we're not going to see some wavering at the top of al Qaeda as to perhaps they should come to a kinder, gentler version of their previous selves. But he's a very smart individual.

It was interesting. Because early days, right after the bin Laden take-down, a lot of people were talking about who is going to replace bin Laden? And there was some thought that maybe Al-Zawahiri is not well liked or is not considered to be as personable - again, strange terms to be using for these characters -- by the rank and file.

But he has been around as long as bin Laden was, even longer. He is extremely committed.

MALVEAUX: Do we have any idea where he is, this guy?

BAKER: Well, no, we don't is the short answer to that. If we knew, he wouldn't be taking over this position. He would be detained or dead. But he and the other remaining senior commanders -- we have been doing a very good job of limiting and minimizing that number, are certainly on notice after the takedown of bin Laden.

MALVEAUX: What is the most striking thing about this individual? I understand that bin Laden was really the inspiration of al Qaeda. Is this more of a operations guy?

BAKER: Well, he's not going to be the great motivator, I suppose you can say, that bin Laden was to his people. But he -- you know, he's a thoughtful individual. In terms of his operational capabilities, not so much. I mean, you can almost argue that he will be relying on the people below him in the operational capacities to bring plans forward, and they - but he's not going to be looked at as the morale booster, the individual who blesses all activity or potential operations. More of a thinker and sort of process guy. Again, it's very bizarre to be talking about al Qaeda as a corporation, I realize, but you almost have to look about it in those terms when you are talking about succession.

MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you so much for joining us. We appreciate your analysis.

BAKER: Sure. Thank you.

MALVEAUX: It's not what firefighters in Arizona want to hear. With winds now picking up, their job could get a lot tougher today.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

CARTER EVANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Time now for "The Help Desk," where we get answers to your financial questions. Joining me this hour, Greg McBride. He's a senior financial analyst at bankrate.com. And Lynnette Khalfani-Cox is founder of the financial advice blog AskTheMoneyCoach.com.

So here's the first question. Ann in Alaska, "I have some money sitting in a savings account. My bank wants to vest it in a commodities basket for five years. The gains over the last year have been about six percent. The principal is FDIC insured. Is this a wise move?"

Greg, why don't you take this one?

GREG MCBRIDE, SENIOR FINANCIAL ANALYST, BANKRATE.COM: Well, Ann, if you have money in a savings account, that's because you may need it for an emergency or other unplanned expense. You don't want to tie that up in a commodity basket or anything else that's going to limit your financial flexibility.

The other thing to keep in mind with some commodity baskets or other linked CD baskets, there is often an early withdrawal penalty that can leave you in the red. So, even though the principal is FDIC insured, if you take out the money early, you can end up in the red.

Also, there are other ways to vest in commodities. I you are looking to add that to your portfolio, you don't necessarily jeopardize your emergency fund to do it.

EVANS: OK. Question number two. Ryan in Michigan says, "I'm 18. I'm wondering if investing in a small duplex to rent out would be a good investment at my age."

Lynnette?

LYNNETTE KHALFANI-COX, FOUNDER, ASKTHEMONEYCOACH.COM: Well, first, I've got to say, wow. An 18-year-old thinking about having an investment property. A lot of people twice his age aren't quite ready.

Yes, I think that at any age, frankly, if you're adult and if you are creditworthy. If you saved up enough money and you have enough for a down payment, etc., you can qualify. You know, an investment property can be a good idea.

But caution I'd giveto somebody that young, establish your credit rating and track record. Make sure in fact that you really are prepared for the rights and responsibilities of homeownership, and particularly of being a landlord. It's not as easy as it seems.

EVANS: I can attest to that, definitely. Thanks, Lynnette.

OK, have a question you wanted answered? Send us an e-mail anytime to CNNhelpdesk@cnn.com.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: A new report out today says that foreclosures are actually down 33 percent from last year. But the experts say that is because the robo-signing scandal, that's not -- it's not because the housing market is actually recovering. So, our CNN's Poppy Harlow, she went to one small city where almost one in 10 homes are in foreclosure.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM (voice-over): At a bird's eye view, Plainfield, New Jersey, may look like lots of small towns across America. But when you walk the streets and talk to the folks here, you start to realize something. The bank own as big chunk of this city.

REGINA PERRY, PLAINFIELD RESIDENT: I moved in three houses and three of the houses that I've lived in have foreclosed and I was forced to move.

HARLOW: Of the roughly 9,000 homes in Plainfield, nearly 900 are in foreclosure. That's almost three times the national average.

LEA MCDONALD, PLAINFIELD RESIDENT: It's terrible. I mean, my kids have to walk past these empty houses. And -- I'm afraid for them.

HARLOW: You won't find padlocks or boarded-up windows. But it's not tough to find people thousands of dollars in debt on their homes.

(on camera): Right here on East Front Street alone, there are 25 homes in foreclosure. And just down the way, on Berkeley Terrace, you'll find eight more.

(voice-over): Crime is now rampant in Plainfield. The police spend their time breaking up gang activity.

And determining which came first is a chicken-and-egg situation for Mayor Sharon Robinson-Briggs.

(on camera): Do you feel that the amount of foreclosures, really, the foreclosure crisis, in this city, led to this increased gang violence?

MAYOR SHARON ROBINSON-BRIGGS, PLAINFIELD, NEW JERSEY: There may be a relationship in terms of certain areas in the city of Plainfield where some of our residents have been laid off, who feel kind of hopeless at this point.

HARLOW (voice-over): The highest density of foreclosures is near the gang violence, 123, within a half-mile. But there are hundreds more all over town.

MCDONALD: The town is going down. Taxes are going up. We're suffering.

HARLOW: Today, home prices continue to fall. There are layoffs in the schools and the city has cut 50 percent of its workers since February.

At Rise N' Shine Restaurant, the owner says business is slumping.

SAUL GUIDARDO, RISE N' SHINE RESTAURANT: There are ups and downs. Some days are better, some days are slow. It's tough.

PERRY: Unless like something can turn around, we need a miracle. You know --

HARLOW (on camera): A miracle?

(END VIDEOTAPE)

MALVEAUX: Poppy Harlow joins us from New York.

And, Poppy, first of all, tell us about the mortgage modification for folks. What are the banks saying?

HARLOW: That's a big question, because the mayor told me, "I need more help from the banks." We reached out, Suzanne, to the two biggest lenders for mortgages in Plainfield, Bank of America and Wells Fargo. Bank of America had no comment. Wells Fargo said they are continuing to work with borrowers in that region to modify their loans. Neither, though, would come on camera with us.

And when you have one in 10 homes in foreclosure, you are cutting half of the city workers, half this year alone. You've got a big problem, and a big, big foreclosure crisis. And, unfortunately, it's not just in Plainfield, New York. This is emblematic of this epidemic we're seeing across the country, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: And, Poppy, talk a little bit about the ripple effects for this town.

HARLOW: That's a good question, because did the gangs come first, the violence or did the foreclosures? We don't know that. We know the gang violence -- some say it's getting worse. The economic situation is getting worse.

What the mayor told us, and it was hard for me to believe this, that already, they have seen hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue just from these foreclosures for the city. Therefore, you have the layoffs. The longer this goes on, the more the city loses. She said, soon, it could be millions of dollars that the city is losing.

So, it's this catch-22. And also, as people leave the city, their homes are foreclosed. They leave the school district, less funding for the schools. So, it's this vicious cycle, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: Wow, unbelievable. Thank you, Poppy. Appreciate it.

HARLOW: Sure.

MALVEAUX: Well, there's still no end in sight to the floods and fires that cover parts of the United States. Along the Missouri River, the Army Corps of Engineers is releasing more water from bloated reservoirs. Areas downstream are keeping a close eye on the levees. Near Omaha, Nebraska, there is concern about bubbling water along a levee near the city's airport.

In Arizona, firefighters face a tough, tough day ahead. High winds are expected to fan the flames of the massive wildfire in the eastern part of the state. The fire is now only 30 percent contained.

And hot dry conditions, and high winds, and they are also feeding wildfires in New Mexico. In some areas evacuations have now been ordered.

Smoke from the western fires is affecting air quality far away from these fires.

I want to bring in Reynolds Wolf for more on that.

And it just seems like, this is -- it gets worse and worse as you have worst weather conditions. I mean, how do you fight that?

REYNOLDS WOLF, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Absolutely. You know, it's almost impossible to do just that. What they need is they need some rainfall. And, unfortunately, you got a surplus of rain and moisture in some parts of the country, and deficit in the others. Obviously, the four corners really getting hit hard with the very dry, wind conditions.

You've seen the video here. Smoke everywhere. And as Suzanne was mentioning moments ago, some of that smoke is moving to other places, into New Mexico, and, in fact, some of them even in parts of Colorado.

And the reason why this is happening is because even though in the surface, you might have some winds that could be around 15, 20 miles per hour, in those high mountain passes, they can be stronger, at times in excess of 40, perhaps even 50 miles an hour.

And what occurs is just like when you have the big volcanic eruptions in, say, Icelandic and you have the pyroclastic clouds that travel around parts of the globe -- well, same rule applies here. You have some of the smoke that's being picked up and moving in parts of the Central Plains, and back into the Central Rockies. And, of course, people that are susceptible to all kinds of airborne illnesses or at least have weak systems in terms of the respiratory tracks, they're going to have some issues.

Critical conditions across much of the four corners, spilling into parts of Texas and into parts of the Central Plains. No relief expected anytime soon. Very low humidity, high winds are going to keep things troubled in parts of the desert southwest.

Again, as we wrap things up on the other side of this, you can expect the heavy rain to continue for parts of Midwest, into the Eastern Seaboard and some spotty showers in the Southwest. Certainly here in Atlanta last night, we have some strong thunderstorms.

Back to you, Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: There were some strong thunderstorms. It was amazing. It's kind of scary, too.

WOLF: We need them, though. We do need them.

MALVEAUX: Yes, which is a good thing. OK. Thanks, Reynolds.

We're giving you a chance to weigh in on today's big story. Today's talk back question, should Congressman Weiner resign?

Mackenzie says, "No, he should not. He's been a champion of his constituents. Isn't that a job of the members of Congress?"

Carol Costello is up next with more of your responses.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: We're awaiting a press conference. Congressman Anthony Weiner is set to resign in about an hour or so. That press conference is going to take place in Brooklyn. That's where our own Mary Snow is. She is at the Council Center for Senior Citizens.

Mary, tell us what the significance is of where you are, the spot that he has chosen to make this announcement and what folks are saying.

MARY SNOW, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, this certainly has special meaning for Anthony Weiner, Suzanne, because this is where he launched his city council campaign two decades ago, and this is where he will give his press conference.

I just want to give you a sense of the kind of media attention it has drawn. This is the line outside the senior citizen center where the press has been lining up the past couple of hours waiting to get in and set up for this press conference.

You know, in talking to some of the constituents here in the ninth district, they are calling it a sad day. He was very popular in this district, both between Democrats, but also Republicans. A lot of people thought that he was very effective. And in talking with some of them today, some felt that he had no choice but to step down and question whether or not he could ever be effective had he stayed in office.

But, as you know in those polls that we had seen just a week ago, a majority of the people in his district felt that he should not resign, that he should weather this out -- Suzanne.

MALVEAUX: All right. Mary, thank you so much. Obviously, we'll be getting to that press conference as it happens, in about an hour or so.

We're also going to talk back question. We asked you, our viewers, whether or not you think it's the right decision whether or not Congressman Anthony Weiner should resign. Your answers with Carol Costello after this break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

MALVEAUX: We're getting responses to today's talk back question.

Carol Costello is here with a look at what they're saying, what you're saying.

Hey, Carol.

COSTELLO: Hey, Suzanne.

The talkback question today: should Congressman Weiner resign?

This from Gary. "Yes, he should resign. Now, if we can just get the rest of the dishonest and cheating politicians out of D.C. Oh, wait, there would be not be anyone left."

This from Joseph. "No crime was committed. Democrats only want him gone because they look bad. Last time I checked a bad P.R. campaign wasn't against the rules."

This from Molly. "Yes, he should resign. This was a stupid and irresponsible decision on his part. It shows terrible judgment. Do we want someone with such poor judgment running this country?"

This from Sam. "If he sexually harassed somebody, that's one thing. But the fact that he is under fire by the media, who is entirely sex-negative, for looking online to satisfy his sexual needs/desires, is ridiculous. Millions of Americans do that every day and don't resign from their jobs."

And this from Tim. "Only after Senators Ensign and Vitter resign. The only difference is that he had pictures but no sex. They had sex, but no pictures."

Well, Ensign did eventually resign. So, one of your wishes came true.

Please continue the conversation, Facebook.com/CarolCNN. And thanks, as always, for your responses.

MALVEAUX: All right. Thank you, Carol.

CNN NEWSROOM continues right now with Randi Kaye who's in for Ali Velshi.

Hey, Randi.