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Real Effects of Debt Clock, Old Spice Guy Vs. Fabio; Tea Party Holds Rally to Further Pressure Republicans; Still Time to Get College Scholarships; Teen Hit Man Gets Three Years in Prison
Aired July 27, 2011 - 11:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
SUZANNE MALVEAUX, CNN ANCHOR: Live from Studio 7, I'm Suzanne Malveaux. Want to get you up to speed for this Wednesday, July 27th. The battle over raising the debt limit hits another roadblock. Just six days before the August 2nd deadline, a vote on a plan by House Speaker John Boehner -- it was expected today. Well, now it's been delayed until at least tomorrow. Congressional number crunchers -- they say that the Boehner plan won't cut spending as much as promised.
From Norway, pictures of last week's bombing of a government building from a different angle. A camera inside a nearby shop shows the moment of impact. Seventy-six people were killed in the bombing and shooting rampage on an island near Oslo. Survivors of the shooting are describing the terror.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KHAMSHAJINY GUNARATNAM, SHOOTING SURVIVOR: When the shooting got closer, I was left with only one question. How would I like to die? I mean, let him shoot me, or shall I just drown in trying to escape?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: The violence just won't stop in Syria. At least eight more people, including an 11-year-old boy, were shot and killed by security forces outside Damascus today. Now, that is according to a human rights group that is on the ground there. Protesters reportedly fought back by throwing rocks at those soldiers.
(INAUDIBLE) Seoul, South Korea, a frantic search for survivors of a massive landslide. At least 32 people were killed, 400 homes destroyed. The land gave way after parts of the region got more than a foot of rain.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA HANCOCKS, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: The death toll has been steady rising here in South Korea as torrential rain continues to pummel the peninsula. Now, this is the rainy season. We're used to rain here, but not to this extent.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: He's a 14-year-old American kid and he was just found guilty of murdering at least four people in Mexico's violent drug war. The judge gave him just three years behind bars. That is the maximum allowed for someone his age. The young man, who is known on the street as "the cloak," did not flinch when explaining how he killed his victims.
(BEING VIDEO CLIP)
QUESTION (translated text): How many have you killed?
ANSWER (translated text): Four.
QUESTION (translated text): How did you execute them?
ANSWER (translated text): Huh?
QUESTION (translated text): How did you execute them?
ANSWER (translated text): I slit their throats.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Powerful storms pound Massachusetts, knocking out power to thousands of homes and businesses. Now, the high winds blew down trees and caused lots of property damage. Some areas got hail as big as ping-pong balls. Well, the region was under a tornado watch, but right now, no tornadoes have been confirmed.
The funding fight that threatens to keep Memphis schools shut down could be resolved soon. The school board says the city owes it, basically, $55 million. But it will take $12 million as partial payment. Now, that payment has to be made next week, just three days before the new school year.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MARTAVIUS JONES, PRESIDENT, MEMPHIS SCHOOL BOARD: We have done our part to say that schools will open as scheduled. And I think that -- I'm more than hopeful, I'm trusting that the city council and the administration will hold up their end of the bargain.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Closer look now at the fallout from the debt limit debacle. While Democrats and Republicans are letting, basically, politics get in the way of a deal, the damage to the credit card (SIC) standing of our country has already been done. Rating agencies warn that if lawmakers reach an agreement, they might still downgrade the nation's credit rating. Executives from the major rating agencies -- they're testifying right now on Capitol Hill.
And our Christine Romans of our Money team explains how these agencies work and why they matter.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Suzanne, before you can get a credit card or borrow money, banks run a credit check on you. The ratings agencies runs credit checks on companies, financial products, even countries. The rating agencies are Standard & Poor's, Fitch, Moody's. They analyze how risky a company is. They give the debt of that company a grade that reflects the borrower's ability to pay back the underlying loans.
Now, the safest bets, like U.S. government debt -- those are stamped AAA. That's the safest rating there is. And it's been that way since 1917, when Moody's first assigned a rating. But that could change soon.
Let's take a look at some of the other countries that have a AAA ratings. The United States and these other 18 countries are all AAA. All these economies, of course, smaller than the U.S. The U.S. is the big safe haven in the world.
So why do these credit agencies matter? Who listens to them? Well, investors around the world listen to them. They look at the credit rating agencies and the credit rating of countries, companies and financial products to decide where they're going to invest their money.
For governments, the rating agencies have a lot of power over the interest rates on the bonds that they can sell to investors. The safest bets pay the lowest interest. That what you want, if you're a government trying to raise money.
So who pays the agencies? Well, agencies are either paid by the borrower that requests the rating or from subscribers who receive these published ratings and need the information in the credit reports. Standard & Poor's tells CNNMoney that the sovereign U.S. rating is unsolicited, that the U.S. government doesn't pay anything for that rating and that it is an unbiased assessment of what's happening in the U.S. with its finances -- Suzanne.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Thank you, Christine.
Here's a rundown, some of the stories that we are covering. First, Wall Street employees are now canceling vacations with the debt ceiling deadline just six days away. Is that a bad omen for your 401(k)?
And I talk to a man who developed a rare tumor after working at Ground Zero for years, and he says the government should pay for his care. Well, the government is saying no.
And then this cute 6-year-old explains what it's like to be attacked by a shark.
Also, the Wild, Wild West town can be yours for a real bargain.
And a 6-year-old with a heart defect won our hearts as the mini- Darth Vader in this Super Bowl commercial. Well, he is now a mini- lobbyist speaking directly to power on Capitol Hill.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MAX PAGE, BORN WITH CONGENITAL HEART DEFECT: Can you tell the president, this? If he cuts -- if the budget gets cut, he needs to realize his daughters might need it.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: It's time to go cross-country for CNN stories the affiliates are covering. First stop, North Carolina. Six-year-old Lucy Mangum is showing off her colorful cast and telling reporters what it feels like to be bitten by a shark. It happened Tuesday in just a foot-and-a-half of water off Ocracoke Island in North Carolina's Outer Banks.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LUCY MANGUM, FORGIVES SHARK THAT BIT HER: It felt (ph) like (ph) it -- like, bit my leg and it felt like it almost stayed there.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
MALVEAUX: Tough stuff.
And in South Dakota, about 50 miles east of Rapid City, the historic town of Scenic is for sale. Well, it's not quite a ghost town, but it's pretty close. Fewer than 10 people actually live there. For a little less than $800,000, you get 46 acres with a saloon, a dance hall, a train depot, two jails and a museum with knotty pine interiors.
Forecasters keeping an eye on a tropical wave expected to enter the Gulf of Mexico. Could be good news for some areas of Texas that have been parched from that drought. Our Rob Marciano is tracking all of it for us.
Rob, is that really good news?
ROB MARCIANO, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Yes. I mean, this is one of the few times where people in Texas and along the coastline are saying, Please bring us a tropical system -- a tropical system, tropical storm, preferably not a hurricane. That's going to be the key here. And of course, the track is going to be key, as well.
But look at the flare-up of thunderstorms just in the past couple of hours. They're going to fly a plane down in through this thing this afternoon. And when it does so, it's probably going to find it to be a tropical depression, may become our next tropical storm. If so, its name would be Don (ph). And then, obviously, it gets into the Gulf of Mexico. And as it does that, that's when things begin to change.
Here's our preliminary forecast for a handful of our computer models, which will be dialed in a little bit better once we get some of that hard-core data back from the hurricane hunter aircraft. But you can see over the next couple of days, it does take it either into northern Mexico, parts of Texas. And of course, Louisiana will be threatened by this particular storm as we go through time.
And as far as the intensity goes, the intensity model guidance is keeping it generally at a moderate to strong tropical storm, maybe becoming a hurricane. I mean, that would be ideal, and right now, that's what it looks like.
This is not ideal -- 105 degrees is the expected high temperature again today in Dallas. For the 25th day in a row yesterday, they hit 100-plus. So that heat is just sucking the life, as far as water is concerned, out of the ground. And because of that, we have seen a record-setting drought here across Texas. Nearly the entire state is under not just extreme but exceptional drought. We would need well over a foot of rain to come even close to getting back to normal for this time of year. And of course that ground is completely unsaturated. It would take some time for it to become saturated.
So we're watching this very carefully. This would be good news, if it got here, of course, bad news if it turned into a Category 2 or 3 hurricane. We don't want that, but we do want the moisture. We'll be monitoring it, of course, throughout the next couple days.
MALVEAUX: I can't imagine how dry that is. If you had a fire, that would just be extraordinary.
MARCIANO: And they've had a few of those, at least in west Texas. And the reservoirs are going down. It's not a good situation. They'll take any rain they can get.
MALVEAUX: OK. Thank you, Rob.
MARCIANO: You bet.
MALVEAUX: Well, a 6-year-old who played a mini-Darth Vader in a Super Bowl ad -- he's fighting to stop potential Medicaid cuts. Hear what Max Page told his congressman during a visit to Capitol Hill.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Well, if you were a 9/11 responder and you have cancer, you're on your own. At least, that is, for now. That is the news from the World Trade Center health program. Officials with the Centers for Disease Control say there is simply not enough evidence to link exposure to the chemicals that were released at Ground Zero with cancer in people who worked at that site after the attacks.
Well, I'm joined now by two people whose -- are directly impacted by this decision, Emil Rapoport, who worked across the street from Ground Zero -- he now has cancer, and Daniel Hansen -- he's an attorney representing several 9/11 responders.
Emil, thank you very much for being here. I want to start with you. You were there when those towers fell, and you got sick shortly afterwards. So can you give us a sense of what happened to you, what your story was? EMIL RAPOPORT, GROUND ZERO RESPONDER: The story was, I was a part of the restoration communication team to restore communication around downtown Wall Street area after the disaster. And later on, I got sick. I got diagnosed in 2005 with a nasopharyngeal carcinoma, which is a very rare type of cancer.
And I went through the hell of what I went through, the medication, therapy and chemotherapy and radiation, me and my family. And I'm trying to be a cancer survivor right now.
And it's not just about me. It's a lot of -- over 50 people died there, which was first responders -- they died out of different type of cancer. And over 100 people suffering as of right now, the first responder, because they are sick with the cancer. I have one of my co-workers that died because of the cancer. The other one, Richie McLaughlin (ph), suffering right now from the cancer as we speak.
And I don't think it's just fair. A lot of people lost their loved ones, they lost their providers that were first responders --
MALVEAUX: Sure.
RAPOPORT: -- and they died because of the cancer.
MALVEAUX: I'm sorry for your loss. Emil, why do you believe that this cancer was caused by what you were exposed to on Ground Zero?
RAPOPORT: First, well, my cancer was between my nose and throat. That's the place where you breathe all the air. And we know for a fact -- first we've been told the air was clear there and safe, and we know for a fact that it's not. And even the doctor from World Trade Center monitoring system, Dr. Yidatsen (ph), she stated and she write down the letter that my cancer is from Ground Zero dust.
MALVEAUX: Due to exposure.
RAPOPORT: And a lot of --
MALVEAUX: Yes. And Emil, how have you been --
RAPOPORT: Yes, for the --
MALVEAUX: -- paying for your treatment? How have you been taking care of yourself, your own medical needs?
RAPOPORT: My medical needs -- I went through the year through the chemotherapy and radiation. And as of right now, because of that, I have a lot of issues. I don't have saliva. I don't have taste. I have a big dental problem. I don't have smell. I have my issue, but I'm still doing what I'm supposed to do. And I hope for -- you know, for all other people that was there, first responders, and they did the right thing what they're supposed to do --
MALVEAUX: Right.
RAPOPORT: -- and now they just got a slap in the face.
DANIEL HANSEN, ATTORNEY REPRESENTING 9/11 RESPONDERS: Suzanne, one of the problems --
MALVEAUX: Daniel, let me -- yes, let me ask you -- I mean, you're representing many people like Emil. What can be done here --
HANSEN: I am.
MALVEAUX: -- because they are exceptionally saying that there's no direct link. Do you have any kind of legal recourse?
HANSEN: Well, we are -- we've been in contact with the offices of Carolyn Maloney, who's been a champion of this cause, also Representative Nadler. We've also been working closely, or as close as we can, with the special master, Sheila Birnbaum (ph).
We've been amassing medical evidence and submitting the reports -- for example, in Emil's case alone, the doctors from the World Trade Center health monitoring program, the same program that's denying him compensation, tell us in a report written that his cancer was caused by his exposure and his years of commitment down at Ground Zero.
Now these very same doctors that are running the program are telling us that he's not covered for either treatment, medical care, benefits, chemotherapy or compensation for the cancer that their own doctors say are related.
So we've been trying to get the word out. There's some town hall meetings coming up --
MALVEAUX: OK --
HANSEN: -- both tonight in Queens -- there's one also in Jersey City that we're participating in, as well. And there's one next week over in Melville (ph), at the Marriott.
MALVEAUX: OK.
HANSEN: So we urge all of the survivors and family members to appear at these meetings --
MALVEAUX: All right --
HANSEN: -- participate, make yourself be heard. And it really is critical that you contact the congresspeople, Senator Schumer, Senator Gillibrand --
MALVEAUX: OK --
HANSEN: -- and let them know and let them be heard that you have these problems. There's also information --
MALVEAUX: All right, Daniel --
HANSEN: -- that's available on the Web -- MALVEAUX: -- we're going to have to -- we're going to have to wrap it there. I know that there are many different places that folks can go to. And obviously, those town hall meetings we're going to keep a close eye on. Very controversial issue here, a lot of people who have suffered who've worked at Ground Zero. Thank you very much, Daniel Hansen, and of course, Emil, for your time and your story, as well. Thank you.
HANSEN: Thank you, Suzanne.
RAPOPORT: Thank you.
MALVEAUX: Well, remember the big hit, right, that your 401(k) took during the great recession? Well, now Wall Street is worried that this debt crisis in D.C. is going to mean -- what is that going to mean for the markets and your investment?
Our Alison Kosik -- she's at the New York Stock Exchange. Alison, a lot of people -- you know, it was not long ago we lost a lot of money. And Wall Street now is preparing for what might lie ahead. Do we see that people reacting the same way?
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Oh, yes. Definitely. Wall Street is getting nervous at this point. You can see it in what the major averages are doing today, the Dow down 88 points. And you're seeing that nervousness in the flight to gold. Investors are now putting their money in gold. They're getting out of stocks. You're seeing it in the dollar. The dollar is weaker today. And we're also seeing it in what's called the VIX. That measures volatility and fear in the marketplace. That is spiking today.
And I'm here with Alan Valdes. He's the director of floor trading here at the New York Stock Exchange. You are seeing (INAUDIBLE) you're seeing these goosebumps, as well.
ALAN VALDES, DIRECTOR OF FLOOR TRADING, DME SECURITIES: No question about it. You know, one thing the market really hates is uncertainty. And right now, there's a ton of uncertainty out there, whether it's the debt ceiling, whether it's the possible downgrade. And don't forget, Friday we've got a big jobs number. We've got GDP this week.
So there's just uncertainty all over the place, low volume, enough to move the market anywhere. And we hit (ph) these numbers in the S&P, 1,335, and we can't hold, so we come back in. So there's a lot of technical things going on, but it's basically all this uncertainty out of Washington.
KOSIK: What are you telling your clients?
VALDES: Well, you know, right now, we're telling our clients if you're in the market, stay in right now and keep a close eye on things. But if you're not, stay on the sidelines. Just watch. There's no rush to get in the market at the moment. There's just too much uncertainty.
KOSIK: Is more of the worry about the downgrade than what happens with the debt ceiling?
VALDES: Yes. Most people think that the debt ceiling will be fixed. I mean, they're going to come to something. Whether it's short-term or long-term, they'll come to some kind of compromise.
But the downgrade from AAA to AA, that's a big move, if, in fact, we are downgraded. And you know, for the average person, the cost, say, in mortgages and car loans, they're going to go up. They're definitely going to go up.
So it's going to be a problem for the average American I think a lot. Even if we don't fall back into a recession, it's going to feel like a recession, if not worse, for some people. Remember, we have 25 million people that are either unemployed or underemployed out there. So things could get worse. Hiring could get worse. And that's the big problem.
KOSIK: Is the downgrade of the U.S. credit rating -- is that all but certain, in Wall Street's eyes?
VALDES: Not all but certain, but I would say if you're a betting man, you'd better towards yes, it is going to be a downgrade. No question about it. But it's not 100 percent certain yet.
KOSIK: OK. All right. Thank you. That's Alan Valdes with DME Securities. We appreciate your time. Suzanne, I'll throw it back to you.
MALVEAUX: OK. Thank you very much, Alison.
Here's a look at today's "Choose the News" stories. You can vote for the story that you'd like to see in the next hour. First choice, a top secret Navy program to protect ships and harbors exposed now. We go underwater to show you how marine mammals, including dolphins, are protecting sailors and civilians against enemy attacks.
Second, New York is using its recent heat wave to help residents keep cool. Now, how are they doing this? A unique partnership and program that's using the sun's rays to ease the city's energy grid burden on those hot days.
And third, let countdown begin. Opening ceremonies for London's Olympic games are exactly one year from today. We're going to go inside the main stadium, show you why these buildings are different than any other Olympic stadium ever constructed.
You can vote by texting 22360. Text 1 for underwater protection, 2 for solar grid program, or 3 for Olympic stadiums. The winning story is going to air in the next hour.
Well, he's known as the mini-Darth Vader after appearing in a Super Bowl ad. Well, the boy behind the mask -- his name is Max Page. And while he looks powerful, he has a heart defect. And Dr. Sanjay Gupta reports that Max went to Capitol Hill -- that's right -- to ask that Medicaid not be cut in the budget war.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DR. SANJAY GUPTA, CNN CHIEF MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: I've been following the story of little Max Page for some time, this crazy cute kid. He is the little mini-Darth Vader, as you see there. And he says he's taking the force to Washington.
What a lot of people may not know about Max is that he was born with a heart condition, required eight operations in six years, got his care at a children's hospital, of which there are only 56 in the country. He met a lot of kids in the hospital that are like him, that need specialty care.
He also met kids who need Medicaid to help get their care. And he realized, along with his parents, that some of those things are now threatened with all the talks that are going on in Washington. So he went to Washington to lobby on behalf of these things and had a meeting with Senator Grassley. Take a listen.
MAX PAGE, BORN WITH CONGENITAL HEART DEFECT: Can you tell the president, this? If he cuts -- if the budget gets cut, he needs to realize his daughters might need it. So if he cuts -- if the budget makes the -- they cut about, like, 75 percent off, it's going to be really bad for maybe his daughters.
GUPTA: As you can see there, Max making a personal appeal to the president and to the president's daughters. Again, you know, just 56 of these children's hospitals in the country. They're responsible for not only taking care of a lot of sick kids but also training the nation's future pediatricians and pediatric specialists.
LAWRENCE MCANDREW, PRES. & CEO NAT'L ASSN. OF CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS: When you have less money, you have less options of providing that care. So you may not hire the physician, you may not offer the clinic, you may not have the program that's necessary for the child. It's not something that's going to happen overnight, but over time, the whole effort to support children's health care is weakened if you don't and you had adequately fund it.
GUPTA: And both sides could have an impact here in terms of what they're proposing. The White House plan could potentially impact the number of pediatricians trained in the future, and the Republican deal, as far as we can tell, could have an impact overall on Medicaid in terms of cutting its funding. So Max, good luck. May the force be with you. Back to you for now.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: May the force be with him. We love that kid! You can see how the rest of Max's congressional meetings went this weekend on "SANJAY GUPTA, MD." Max and his parents are going to talk to Sanjay about what they accomplished on the Hill. Watch this Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 AM Eastern only here on CNN.
Well, driving home the point about how the debt crisis could affect you, we're going to go live to a car dealership for a look at the real impact on businesses and car buyers. (COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Here's the rundown. Some of the stories we're working on next.
A huge role the Tea Party is play management debt stalemate.
And he's just 14, but the violence he's committed, unthinkable.
And later, did you know that with every mouse click you make, marketers are watching us. Hear about the fight against digital fingerprints.
Well, while lawmakers in Washington are haggling over raising the debt ceiling, some of you may be about to haggle over buying a car, the price of a car. Well, it is going to cost you more if there's no deal on increasing the debt limit.
CNN's Sandra Endo joins us from a car dealership -- Sandra, in Los Angeles. What are people saying about the debt crisis and how it might affect them?
SANDRA ENDO, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Suzanne, there are a lot of nervous jittery people out here. And they don't know how there stalemate is going to affect them. This is one business that will be directly impacted if Washington lawmakers don't can come together. They're already trying to slash prices to get these Jeeps off the lot, Suzanne.
But the economy is tough already and it could get worse as you mentioned because interest rates may go up, car loans will be tougher to get, more expensive if lawmakers really don't come together on a deal.
And I'm joined by the general manager of sales here, Ron Wheeler.
How do you think this whole thing is playing out in Washington? You're watching it very closely. How will this impact this business?
RON WHEELER, GEN. MGR. SALES, BUERGE CHRYSLER & JEEP: Well, you know, our business is very sensitive to the financial needs of our customers. At our ground level, I don't think Washington really understands the impact that this financial civil war is having on our business and the business of the entire United States.
ENDO: Because this will affect people's ability to buy a car, right? And you were saying that business is already tough.
WHEELER: Business is tough. You know, we've gone through, you know, the high price of fuel, not just -- a few months ago. And it needs to stop -- it needs to stop immediately.
And you've been listening to the debate play out in Washington. You listened to the president's speech a couple of nights ago. What do you think of all the rhetoric? WHEELER: Well, you know, to me, I think it's come to the point that it's too just egotistical. You know, our president and John Boehner, it looks like a bad marriage and the entire world is watching.
ENDO: And you've said that this is really partisan politics at play.
WHEELER: Absolutely. And we need to get down to the brass tacks of what we need. And what we need is we need a compromise and a settlement immediately so we can get back to doing what we do best. And what America is all about.
ENDO: All right. Ron Wheeler, thank you so much. Good luck with everything.
And I guess good luck to lawmakers who really need to come together, Suzanne, on a deal because it affects so many people right here on ground level.
MALVEAUX: Absolutely. And when you get people talking about it being a financial civil war, I mean, that's pretty serious stuff there. A lot of people looking to Washington -- looking to these folks saying, hey, look, let's get this thing done. Work out the differences.
Thank you, Sandra. Appreciate it. Thank you, guest, as well.
Well, look out Old Spice guy. New guy wants to take your place. That's right.
One has long hair, the other short. They both have lots of muscles. We'll see how that goes.
And if you're away from your TV, I want you to check this out. This is really pretty cool because you can still watch CNN NEWSROOM right here, right now, on your phone, your computer, your iPad. You can see this show or any of your CNN favorites live on the go.
This is what we're looking at right here. You got to check out CNN.com/video or just download the app and go. A slight delay there, but it's all right there for you right on your iPad.
All right. We'll have more after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Reminder to vote for today's "choose the news" story. Text your vote to 22360. Text 1 for underwater protection, a look at a top secret Navy program that uses dolphins to keep sailors and civilians safe. Text 2 for solar grade program, how New York is using a recent heat wave to cool the city's residents. And text 3 for Olympic stadiums. Go inside London's main Olympic Stadium, see why these buildings are so different than any Olympic stadium ever constructed.
Wining story is going to air next hour.
Well, you could call it the war of the spices, the spice wars. We're talking about romance novel icon Fabio trying to unseat the Old Spice guy as the face of your dad's after shave lotion.
Here is Jeanne Moos.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It's the showdown of the summer. No, not between the president and House Speaker John Boehner. We mean the one between Fabio --
FABIO: Hello, old Old Spice guy who is gross.
MOOS: -- and the old Old Spice guy.
ISAIAH MUSTAFA, OLD SPICE GUY: This may, in fact, be the greatest Internet duel of all-time., G-I-D-O-A-T.
MOOS: Did he say dual?
FABIO: Duel?
MUSTAFA: Mano-a-mano in el bano.
MOOS: Isaiah Mustafa became the undisputed face of Old Spice --
MUSTAFA: Look out, back out, where are you? You're on a boat with the man your man could smell like.
MOOS: -- when he broke through with this commercial almost a year and a halving a go. But now, the campaign could use some new sparkle.
FABIO: Hello, ladies. Don't look at your man, look at me, your new Old Spice guy, Fabio.
MOOS (on camera): Sure this is nothing but an advertising gimmick. We all know Fabio's probably going to lose. This local duel is just free advertising for their advertising.
(voice-over): But when the upstart is a golden maimed B-lister most famous romance novels like "Rogue" and fake butter commercials, you better believe we'll cover the manufactured duel.
MUSTAFA: And may the best Old Spice guy win. Night vision top hat.
MOOS: So folks are being asked to vote.
MUSTAFA: Now, if you possess the strength to move your eyes from my exposed torso to the bottom of this video window, you will see buttons that cast your vote.
FABIO: Thank you for showing team Fabio your support. MOOS: What support? The old Old Spice guy is killing Fabio judging by the comments. You can even tweet questions to the two adversaries and they may respond with personalized videos.
But mostly, they insult each other.
MUSTAFA: Fabio is about as threatening to me as being coughed on by a gnat.
MOOS: Is Fabio's goose cooked? If so, it won't be the first time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fabio had to be rushed to a Virginia hospital yesterday after his oddly proportioned face collided with a goose while riding in the front of a new Busch Gardens roller coaster.
MOOS: Though, truly, the one whose goose was cooked was the goose. It was found dead after the midair collision -- probably got strangled in Fabio's hair.
FABIO: Tropical breeze --
MOOS: Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Well, with the debt deadline just six days away, some members of the Tea Party are saying bring it on. That is tying the hands of more traditional Republicans.
And our Jim Acosta has got the latest in the Political Ticker.
But, first, these are -- yes, it's kind of gross, the dirtiest hotels in America. According to customer reviews on the travel Web site Trip Adviser, the Desert Inn Resort in Dayton Beach, Florida, ranks number three. Reviewers complain about everything from cigarette burns to bugs in the bed box springs.
Well, the Jack London Inn in Oakland, California, it ranks the second dirtiest. Reviewers say the hallways reek of cigarette smoke and body odor.
And the dirtiest of all hotels in America? Well, that answer is coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
MALVEAUX: Well, according to traveler reviews on the Web site Trip Adviser, these are the three dirtiest hotels in America. What hotel ranked dirtiest in the country?
The Grand Resort Hotel and Convention Center in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. Reviewers cited chewing tobacco spit in the halls and spiders actively making webs in every corner of the room. Pretty gross stuff. Well, we all know that college is expensive, tuition prices right now at an all-time high. So, most scholarships have deadlines, right in the fall or the spring. But students who are looking for financial aid, they can still find some free dollars.
Our Alison Kosik, she's got some tips to finding those last minute scholarship.
Hey, Alison.
KOSIK: Hey, everybody likes free money, right?
Well, whether you're an incoming freshman, Suzanne, or you're already in college, you know what? You still have time to take advantage of the summer months to look for some of that free money. So, Scholarship America, that's and online provider of scholarship, says first you have to do your home work. Scholarships are awarded year-round.
There are many contests with deadlines that happen throughout the summer. It's also important to plan ahead because applications can be complex and they can be time-consuming. And you also want to keep an eye out for renewable scholarships because those ensure that students have the means to actually stay in school and, of course, the thinking is go ahead and write a thank you note for every scholarship you do receive because it shows your appreciation -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: Alison, where are the best places to look?
KOSIK: Well, we asked Lauren Siegel, she's the president/CEO of Scholarship of America, and she recommends that searching online sites like FastWeb and Zinch.com, to go ahead and find a wide range of those scholarships.
Also, you also want to look beyond academics and athletics and put your interests to work. There are scholarships for all types of personality traits out there for hobbies, and even family health and wellness issues.
And look close to home as well. Many local financial institutions, small businesses and even parents' employers offer scholarship programs -- Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: All right, Alison, we're going to ask you next what you can do to make your scholarship application stand out from all those other folks who are going to be applying, as well.
We're going to have that after the break.
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MALVEAUX: We're back talking scholarships with Alison Kosik.
And, Alison, are there any specific things that you should do when you're applying? What can students do to stand out in their applications? KOSIK: OK, so I know this sounds simple, Suzanne, but the big advice here is to follow the rules. Actually pay attention to the scholarship guidelines. If it asks for a 200-word essay, don't go ahead and send a 400-word essay because you may be screened out of the process.
Lauren Siegel from Scholarship America, she encourages students to spend the summer doing activities that will make their application more appealing. Case in point, you could earn extra points for extracurricular activities, community service, volunteer work, if you participate in a sport, any activities that highlight your personality could be that X-factor that earns you those scholarship dollars and get your application to stand out from the rest. And that's essentially what you want ultimately, Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: All right, Alison, thank you. Great advice.
Well, a reminder to vote for today's "Choose the News" stories. Text your vote to "22360."
Text "1" for Underwater Protection, it's a look at a top-secret Navy program that uses dolphins to keep sailors and civilians safe.
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Winning story is going to air in the next hour.
Well, the clock winding down. It is just six days left before the country is forced to default. But members of the Tea Party, they're not flinching.
Out Jim Acosta, he's part of "The Best Political Team on Television," and Jim is live from a Tea Party rally in Washington.
Jim, you know, a lot of people starting to sweat over the whole thing of the debt. What is the mood with the Tea Party folks here?
JIM ACOSTA, CNN POLITICAL CORRESPONDENT: Suzanne, they are not sweating it out here. In fact, the Tea Party groups that are going to be out here today are going to be pushing the speaker and other Republican leaders on Capitol Hill perhaps to sweat a little more.
They are holding a rally here in just a few moments, what they are calling a Hold the Line rally, and what they are urging the speaker and others to do is not raise the debt ceiling.
Now you may ask yourself, wait a minute, all the deals they are talking about up on Capitol Hill would raise the debt ceiling. Well, there are Tea Party activist out here that think that's a bad idea, because, in their minds, if you raise the debt ceiling, you increase borrowing. You're going to add more money to the national debt. And they want to just hold the line and keep the debt ceiling where it is right now and pass what made its way through the House, which is the cut, cap and balance package, which I won't go into because it's complicated, but it would cut spending, put caps on spending levels, add a balanced budget amendment later on in the future, and they would rather see that become law rather than some compromised deal kept between the Democrats and Republicans that would raise the debt ceiling, Suzanne.
MALVEAUX: All right, Jim, we want to go straight to another location in Washington, that is where Senator Harry Reid is speaking along with some of the other Democratic leaders to talk about where they are in the negotiations.
Let's listen.
(JOINED IN PROGRESS)
SEN. HARRY REID (D-NV), MAJORITY LEADER: -- to take care of the problems that Democrats said they had and Republicans said they had. It meets our goals of protecting Social Security and Medicare.
It is a good piece of legislation, it's a compromise. But it also set aside the two major demands Republicans have made. It doesn't contain revenues, and the amount of cuts meets the length of the debt ceiling we're trying to increase.
We feel comfortable with the score that we got from CBO, I know there are a couple questions of that, to extend the debt that we need. We need $2.4 trillion, and that with -- but also understand that with CBO we always give them something to look at, and rarely is the first run through what we wind up with. So for us to arrive at 2.4 or 2.5 is really fairly easy to do. It's when we cal tweaking it, can be done easily.
We'll continue to add savings to increase the number of total savings, if necessary, and we are confident the final bill will meet our bottom line of raising the debt ceiling through the end of 2012. it
The bottom line, though, is this: There's only one bill in Congress that is a true compromise. We're running out of time, it's time to get serious about finding that compromise.
Senator Durbin.
SEN. DICK DURBIN (D-IL), MAJORITY WHIP: Thank you, Senator Reid.
Speaker Boehner spoke to the American public on Monday night with the president. He said he had a plan. The next day, Tuesday, his plan was downgraded --
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MALVEAUX: We're listening to the Democratic leadership talking about the need for a compromise as the clock ticks down on that deadline, whether the U.S. will default on its bills. We're going t have more of that as well.
And we are following another story. They called him "The Cloak." Meet the 14-year-old boy that slit the throats of his enemies in the Mexican drug war. Rafael Romo will have that story up next.
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MALVEAUX: He's a teenager and an American citizen, he is also a ruthless hit man in Mexico's ongoing drug war. Rafael Romo has the story of a stone cold killer who is just 14.
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RAFAEL ROMO, CNN SENIOR LATIN AFFAIRS EDITOR (voice-over): It took less than a week. After six days of testimony at this juvenile court in central Mexico, a 14-year-old boy accused of being an assassin for a Mexican drug cartel was found guilty.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We had 43 witnesses that testified during the hearings. Of course, we weren't only counting on witnesses. The prosecution had plenty of circumstantial evidence in this trial.
ROMO: His alias is "El Ponchis," or "The Cloak." In this video taken only hours after he was captured last December, this slim American citizen born in San Diego admits to being responsible for gruesome murders.
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QUESTION (translated text): How many have you killed?
ANSWER (translated text): Four.
QUESTION (translated text): How did you execute them?
ANSWER (translated text): Huh?
QUESTION (translated text): How did you execute them?
ANSWER (translated text): I slit their throats.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ROMO: The defense attorney did not call any witnesses and the judge gave the harshest sentence he could to a teenager under Mexican law, three years in a correctional facility.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We carried out the verdict hearing. The sentence hearing was not scheduled until Friday. However, both the defense and the prosecution asked to proceed with the sentencing hearing right away, and that's what the court did.
ROMO: In addition to the three-year-sentence, the judge also fined "El Ponchis" the equivalent of $400,000 American.
Because he's a minor, the trial was closed to the public and the press and under strict security measures.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (through translator): We understand some relatives have come to visit him, although they're not close relatives. Of course, it is important that he stays close to his family and we're going to be vigilant about that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MALVEAUX: Rafael Romo joins us now.
It's really kind of an unbelievable story. You and I were talking about this before, and you were saying there are things this young man has done that you cannot talk about, really, it's just that horrific.
ROMO: Exactly. There were videos of this young man on the Internet where he is torturing his victims, surrounded by members of what used to be his gang, and the level of cruelty is just unimaginable and obviously something that we would not be able to show on the air.
MALVEAUX: Is this the first case of a teenager who has been involved in this kinds of level of violence in the drug war there?
ROMO: Sadly, it is not. There were six more arrested last October in Mexico, also belonging to the same cartel by the name of the South Pacific cartel, then it was him in December. And as far as we know, in the same state where he was tried, the state of Morelos in central Mexico, there are as many as 14 minors accused of or tried for being part of organized crime in Mexico.
MALVEAUX: Why is this happening?
ROMO: It's happening because the cartels are realizing that they can recruit young men in Mexico who are hungry, who come from a lower socioeconomic status, and they know that they can recruit them and give them money and lie to them and do what they did with "El Ponchis."
MALVEAUX: Excellent reporting. It's a tragic story. Thank you, Rafael.
