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Fires Destroy Almost 500 Homes in Texas; Republicans Outline Jobs Plans; Family Sues Over Black Man's Killing

Aired September 06, 2011 - 10:59   ET

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

DREW GRIFFIN, CNN ANCHOR: We will continue, though, with the breaking news. Live from Studio 7, I am Drew Griffin, in for Suzanne. Let's get you up to speed on this Tuesday, September 6th.

More parched earth going up in flames across Texas. Wildfires raging through thousands of acres of farm and range land. The worst near Austin. Five hundred homes have been destroyed, at least 5,000 people forced to evacuate, some with just minutes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: My house, I don't know. Maybe my animals. Oh my God.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We left our house, and about 30 minutes later, we couldn't even get back to it. So it's moving probably eight or 10 miles an hour across the ground.

So, you know, God help us. That's all. That's all we can do right now.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: A whole different story in the East. Tornado warnings echoed through north Georgia. Remnants of Tropical Storm Lee sweeping through the area, spawning tornadoes that damaged dozens of homes. The storm left one person dead in Mississippi, knocking out power to thousands all across the South.

Stocks, deep in the red across the board today. The Dow fell more than 260 points just after the opening bell, and right now still hanging down around 252, 253 points.

New concerns about Europe's debt crisis and the global economy weighing on investors. U.S. stocks plunged Friday after a disappointing report showed no growth of jobs in August.

Two convoys of Libyans allegedly loyal to Moammar Gadhafi have fled to Niger, a country just south of Libya. A source in Niger's Interior Ministry says six high-ranking Libyan officials were in one of those convoys. Still no sign though of Gadhafi himself. NATO officials say their job is to keep the Libyan people safe and not to target the fleeing regime leaders.

It is the first day at a new job for General Petraeus. The man who was once the top U.S. commander in Iraq and Afghanistan, he's now taking the reins at the CIA. That's after almost four decades of service in the military. Petraeus says the career change will be an exciting new journey.

And Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney says he has a plan to get America working again. Romney will unveil his jobs plan later today. He says it includes 59 specific proposals to help the economy. The plan calls for tax cuts, tax reform, scaling back regulation, and a system for retraining workers.

We're going to bring you that event live. It's scheduled to start at 3:30 Eastern Time today.

President Obama spells out his plan for job growth before Congress. That happens Thursday.

At a Labor Day rally, though, with union members, he told the crowd he will work to restore the middle class in America, challenging Republicans in Congress to support the plans he has yet to outline.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: There is work to be done and there are workers ready to do it. Labor is on board, business is on board. We just need Congress to get on board.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: Of course, CNN's special coverage of the president's address on job growth begins Thursday at 6:00 Eastern Time.

Back to the wildfires racing out of control across Texas. The Bastrop County Fire is the worst. More than 25,000 acres scorched.

Jim Spellman is there.

Jim, what are you hearing about containment today? Are they making any headwind on this?

JIM SPELLMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: No containment at all yet, Drew. This fire is still going, but winds are good today, they're calm, and it's much cooler, allow firefighters to try to get some containment. We won't know for a couple hours what kind of success they've had.

Drew, I want to introduce you to Sharah Johnson and her daughter Claire. They were forced to evacuate when the fire went through there, raged through their neighborhood on Sunday.

What was that like when that fire started coming?

SHARAH JOHNSON, HOME DESTROYED BY FIRE: We just got a call from our neighbor that we needed to get out, and Claire also was getting calls from friends who live on the street saying we had to get out. And we just threw the kids and dog in the car and left.

SPELLMAN: And your home?

JOHNSON: It's gone. We hear from a neighbor who snuck back in -- we're not allowed to go back probably for a few more days to see, but a neighbor said that he saw our house and it was gone.

SPELLMAN: Claire, what's it like to go through that? What does it feel like?

CLAIRE JOHNSON, HOME DESTROYED BY FIRE: Well, right now you just can't really think anything about it. Everybody else is in the same situation. There's no self-pity. There can't be, because we're going to be better off than most, but the fact that half of our town is homeless, you can't really think of yourself right now.

SPELLMAN: What are you going to do?

S. JOHNSON: We don't know. We're trying to formulate a short- term plan, a midterm plan. And like everybody else, we're just wandering around stunned and just aimless, and figuring out what to do next.

SPELLMAN: Drew, a lot of people in this same position here. They're coming here -- this is the command center here for this fire -- trying to pick up a few supplies, some water, even toilet paper, things like that.

Nobody is sure really what they're going to do until people can get back in and assess the damage from this fire. Like you said, about 500 home destroyed that we know of already, and that could well go up today -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Jim, I'm surprised how well they seem to be doing. These are literally refugees, and unlike people who have had their homes flooded, as you well know, when you go back from a wildfire, and your home is destroyed, there is literally nothing left.

SPELLMAN: No. And they've had to go back. Claire's husband had to go back and try to get a new driver's license today. They had some cash. They just got to the ATM, it was gone. Stuff you don't even think of, just destroyed.

That's not waterlogged, like you said, in a flood. That's just gone. So it's going to be a lot of rebuilding. And it is amazing they've managed to keep their spirits up. I'm not sure I can't do the same -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: All right. Jim Spellman, thanks for bringing us that from Texas.

Well, here's a rundown of some of the stories ahead.

First, a global sell-off. It's got investors jittery. What does it mean for your portfolio? We're live at the New York Stock Exchange, as we always are.

Then, the president is set to unveil his plan to get America back to work, but Republican presidential candidates have some ideas of their own. We're going to break those down for you.

And a group of teens rips out a page of Mississippi's troubled past, allegedly killing a man for one reason -- he was black. You'll hear from that man's family.

And this --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They just said be prepared to shoot down the next hijack track. And I screamed (ph), "That's a Roger." And then they came back right after that and said, "Do you have a problem with that?"

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: We're going to have a look at the markets in just a moment, but first some choices for today's "Choose the News." Text "22360" for the story you want to see.

What are the choices? How about this one? A young world. A global conference brings together more than 1,600 youth from 160 countries. Hear from some of the celebrity guests, and also the teens participating, to see how they would plan to change the world.

Second, produce patrol. Think of a healthy version of an ice cream truck. We're going to take you inside this renovated bus bringing fruits and vegetables to neighborhoods called food deserts.

Third choice, testing the Fiat. The Italian automaker bought Chrysler, and is hoping a car with a fresh new Italian feel will help change the Chrysler brand. See if the new Fiat 500 makes the grade.

This is how you choose. Vote by texting to "22360," texting "1" for "Young World"; "2" for "Produce Patrol"; or "3" for "Testing the Fiat."

The winning story airs next hour.

At CNNMoney.com you can see the big story. It's one big story, because it's one big skid. The stocks taking a tumble again today, and we want to check in to see what is happening at the markets. You can see they're still pretty far down.

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

GRIFFIN: Well, the family of a man who was allegedly murdered in a hate crime speaking out this hour. James Craig Anderson's loved ones want to know why more suspects haven't been arrested in a brutal attack that was caught on video.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Looking ahead, a lot is riding on President Obama's big speech on jobs. He's going to outline his plans for promoting job growth before a joint session of Congress on Thursday. Republicans who want to replace him are coming out with their own plans for creating jobs, and we're going to break them down for you.

Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney unveils his plan later today. It's going to call for creating a "Reagan Economic Zone," a partnership among countries committed to fair trade. Romney says that would open more markets to U.S. goods and services. Will it?

Let's bring in Christine Romans of our Money team to talk about this idea.

Christine, how would this be different from what the World Trade Organization already does? And will it create jobs?

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, it's interesting, because it certainly puts a new point on his economic plan, because much of the Republican economic plans, they're kind of similar. So this is a special Reagan trade zone, and it would be used to -- a mechanism, he says, to confront countries like China that are flouting trade rules and trade laws and getting preferential treatment in the global marketplace.

He says that's how that would create jobs. We'll be getting more details about this "Reagan Economic Zone" when he gives his details of his speech -- or his economic plan -- later this afternoon. Certainly something that's piquing a little bit of interest this morning.

GRIFFIN: Yes. Also piquing interest, Michele Bachmann's idea. She would cut the corporate tax rate to 20 percent, eliminate regulation, she says, that have stifled economic growth.

How is that going to stack up in improving jobs?

ROMANS: A lot of folks -- all of the Republican candidates would like to cut corporate taxes. They would like to cut regulation. They'd like to end the president's health care reform.

The idea being that if companies aren't paying so much in taxes here, they're going to be reinvesting that money and growing their business. But you've got to cut corporate taxes, many others say, by also getting rid of all the loopholes as well.

In many cases, companies are not paying the 35 percent printed corporate income tax rate. Right, Drew? They're paying much less than that because of all of the tax deductions. That's where tax reform comes into play, it's why some of the candidates are actually advocating for tax reform, first and foremost.

GRIFFIN: Yes. And I think that's why "The Wall Street Journal" endorsed Jon Huntsman. His plan, overhaul the tax code and create this three-bracket system, it would eliminate popular tax credits and deductions, though, including home mortgage deduction.

ROMANS: That's right.

GRIFFIN: I'm not sure that would politically fly, but would that help job growth?

ROMANS: But if your federal job income were dropped to, say, eight percent, or 14 percent, which are two of his tax brackets, maybe depending on who you are, you would give up your mortgage interest deduction if you were paying lower taxes on the other end. Also, he would kill the Alternative Minimum Tax, and he would reform the tax code altogether.

He would also pare down the size of government. He would also pare back a lot of different regulations, and also would repeal President Obama's health care reform law.

So that's one of the reasons -- or many of the reasons why "The Wall Street Journal" has endorsed his plan in particular.

GRIFFIN: Yes. And Christine, we should point out, other countries don't have that mortgage deduction. I think Canada, and they have the same house ownership that we do, I believe.

ROMANS: Yes. And many people say that, actually, that mortgage interest deduction was a perverse incentive for people to buy bigger houses than they could afford, and it's a big transfer of wealth, quite frankly. It's billions and billions of dollars that goes right back out of taxes and right back into pockets of taxpayers. Maybe lower home prices would be better in the first place.

GRIFFIN: Yes. Now, Republicans have this other idea about repealing this health care reform bill. And not so much from Republicans, but from small business owners deciding whether or not to hire people, I hear this a lot. They don't know what's coming with "Obamacare," and they're afraid to make a move.

ROMANS: And they're afraid to make a move, and they're listening to a lot of information on the radio, or from friends and colleagues that are not quite sure what's going to happen. You're absolutely right.

There's some big companies, too, that have been coming out and saying that it's going to be onerous for them. And in general, the Republicans are pushing this sort of -- this storyline that there's too much regulation that's killing jobs, that "Obamacare" is killing jobs.

And economists, when you talk to them, they say the truth lies somewhere in between here. It's not too much regulation that killed jobs, it's a financial crisis that killed jobs. And that they're just now rolling out health care reform, and there's simply a lot of misinformation out there in general about it and what it's going to mean for people.

And I'll tell you where there has been a cottage industry of jobs growth because of health care reform, Drew. It's in these consultants who are going around trying to take a look at companies' books and tell them how they're going to have to, you know, get up to health care reform standards and the like.

So we'll watch that space as well. But that is -- every single one of these candidates is saying kill Obamacare.

GRIFFIN: Yes, absolutely. Christine, thanks. Good conversation there.

ROMANS: You're welcome. Yes.

GRIFFIN: And a reminder. President Obama is going to lay out his plan for job growth Thursday night before a joint session of Congress. Don't miss CNN's special live coverage. It begins at 6:00 Eastern Time.

Well, in Jackson, Mississippi, this hour, we're hearing from the family attorney of a man who was allegedly murdered for one reason -- he was black. His name, James Craig Anderson, and his family members have just filed a wrongful death suit against seven white teenagers they say killed Anderson because of the color of his skin.

Prosecutors have labeled this a hate crime, but so far just two of the teenagers involved have been charged, including the 19-year-old who prosecutors say deliberately ran down the 49-year-old autoworker. The lawsuit filed by Anderson's mother, sister and two brothers seeks a jury trial and damages.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WINSTON THOMPSON, ATTORNEY FOR ANDERSON'S FAMILY: The lawsuit makes various allegations against all seven individuals that were present that night. We allege that all seven individuals too, part in what we call a joint venture to seek out and do harm to a person of color. In this particular instance, it was James Craig Anderson, a black individual whom they did murder. And we are seeking damages against all seven of the defendants.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: This attack on James Anderson was caught on tape. The details include disturbing language and images.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): Deryl Dedmon is thin, short, with straggly blonde hair, accused of leading a group of white teenage revelers on a mission to find and beat up anyone who was black. On June 26th, a group of white teens, seven in all, leaving an all-night party in the white middle class enclave of Rankin County, Mississippi, in search of a black person to "mess with."

(on camera): Out of hate?

ROBERT SHULER SMITH, HINDS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY: Out of hate. That's exactly --

GRIFFIN: No doubt in your mind, this was a racially-motivated, hate-motivated, "let's go kill a black guy" crime?

SMITH: Absolutely. There's no doubt. They were looking for a black victim to assault and even kill in this instance.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): They drove 16 miles on a freeway heading west. At 5:00 a.m. that Sunday morning, the teens in two vehicles took the Ellis Avenue off-ramp leading to a predominantly black section of Jackson. Just as they were exiting, an unsuspecting 49- year-old autoworker named James Craig Anderson was standing by his car at this local motel, and he was black.

(on camera): So, literally, they found the first black person they could find, and that person was in this parking lot?

SMITH: Well, yes. This is the first business that you get to coming off of the highway. And so that was the first person that apparently was out here and vulnerable.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): According to witness statements, at first James Craig Anderson was beaten and taunted with racial slurs. Surveillance video shows white teens going back and forth in what prosecutors say was a continuous beating of the victim.

As one of the teens walks back to the cars after beating Anderson, he pumps his fist in the air and shouts, "White power!" according to a motel security guard. Then some of the teens got in the white SUV and drove away, leaving Anderson beaten and lying on the ground.

(on camera): Deryl Dedmon apparently wasn't through. He had two girls in his truck as he was leaving this parking lot, a big F-250 pickup truck.

James Craig Anderson, the man who was beaten almost to a pulp, was stumbling down this curb. That's when police say Deryl Dedmon hit the gas, jumped the curb, and ran right over his victim, smashing him. What he didn't know was the entire episode was being caught on a surveillance camera on the corner of this hotel.

(voice-over): Here you see James Craig Anderson in a hotel parking lot as he first comes into view in the lower right corner of the screen. This is after he was beaten, according to law enforcement officials.

He staggers into the headlights of Mr. Dedmon's truck. The truck backs up and surges forward suddenly, running right over the defenseless man.

According to police, Dedmon, with two teenage girls as his passengers, drove to a local McDonald's, meeting up with the rest of the group. There, according to witnesses interviewed by police, he said, "I ran that nigger over."

SMITH: He was not remorseful. He was laughing -- laughing about the killing.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: Deryl Dedmon and the second teenager, who, by the way, is charged with simple assault, have yet to enter pleas in this case. Dedmon's attorney has not returned any calls to CNN, but said in court last month, "This is not a racial crime."

We'll keep you posted.

Well, they were on the front lines of a very dark day in America's history, September 11th. I talked to a fighter pilot who was called into service to shoot down one of the hijacked planes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Here's a rundown of some of the stories we're working on.

Up next, the order that no U.S. fighter pilot had heard before September 11th or hopes to ever hear again: shoot down a commercial plane. The fighter pilots tells me his story.

Then, the big shake-up in Michele Bachmann's presidential campaign.

And later, almost 500 homes gutted by wildfires in Texas, hundreds more now at risk. We're going to take you to the scene live.

Well, this Sunday marks the 10th anniversary of the September 11th attacks. And for many like fighter pilot Tim Duffy, who tried to intercept a hijacked plane, their lives were changed forever.

I spoke with Duffy about that dark day when he was called into service.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN (voice-over): 8:46 a.m., Otis Air Base, Cape Cod, Tim Duffy, a commercial airline pilot for United, was working his second job, on alert as a fighter pilot with the Massachusetts Air National Guard. Duffy, footnote 117, is given the order to scramble his F-15. There is a confirmed hijacking. The order for Duffy and his wingman, take off from this now deserted airfield.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's Otis Tower. I have an active air defense scramble, F-15s, climbing to flight level 290.

GRIFFIN: Under orders to find and intercept American Flight 11.

(on camera): So these were the two hangars.

TIM DUFFY, FIGHTER PILOT, AIR NATIONAL GUARD: Yes, these are cells 3 and 4. They would have jets in all of them, just depending on what jets you're going to need that day. And these were the ones that were armed up, and so we had hot missiles and a hot gun, so they were all armed up.

GRIFFIN (voice-over): By the end of this morning, Duffy will be asked if he's prepared to use those missiles to bring down U.S. passenger jets. And that meant he might be shooting down a plane carrying his United Airlines colleagues.

DUFFY: And they just said, "Be prepared to shoot down the next hijack track. And I screamed back -- I said, "Roger." And then they came back right after that and said, "Do you have a problem with that?"

That kind of ticked me off. That what kind of sticks in my memory for that call, being in that situation, if I wasn't ready to do whatever I was called for, I was the wrong person in that seat.

GRIFFIN: Breaking the sound barrier, Tim Duffy is barreling towards Manhattan, still under orders to intercept a plane. But which plane? His conversation with air travel control shows how fast events were moving that chaotic morning.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. I understand you are going to look for American 11. Is that correct?

DUFFY: Affirmative.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. I just got information that the aircraft has been crashed into the World Trade Center, so I'm not quite sure what your intentions are, if you're still going to head that way, or you may want to talk to your operations.

GRIFFIN: Then, 17 minutes after American Airlines Flight 11 slams into the World Trade Center's north tower, at 9:03 a.m., United 175 hits the south tower.

DUFFY: We're about 60 miles from Kennedy, and probably about 80 miles or so from Manhattan. That's when they told me the second aircraft just hit the World Trade Center. Obviously, some confusion in my cockpit -- I thought I was still chasing American Flight 11. They told me a second aircraft, which I didn't even know about.

So, I looked up right away and I could see the smoke coming out of both towers. As I saw the towers burning, you know, with two airliners in them, we're obviously under attack.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: One of the footnotes of 9/11.

To hear more from these Americans who were on the front lines the morning of September 11, watch our documentary "Footnotes of 9/11." It airs tonight at 11:00 Eastern.

And a reminder to vote for today's "Choose the News" winner. Text 22360 for the story you want see. You can text 1 for One Young World, a global conference bringing together more than 1,600 youths from 160 countries trying to change the world. Text 2 for produce patrol. Go aboard a renovated bus. It's bringing fresh fruits and vegetables to Chicago neighborhoods that some consider food deserts. And you can text 3 for testing the fiat. We're going to kick the tires of a car that company leaders are hoping that are going to change the Chrysler brand. The winning story airs next hour. Well, a businessman in Indiana makes as unusual move because he can't afford to pay his property taxes. You will see it on eBay.

And we also have this story. The U.S. Postal Service is low on cash. And if Congress doesn't act soon, it could shut down? That's devastating news for millions of Americans who still rely on mail carriers for service. So we thought we would ask, how many pieces of mail do you think the Postal Service handles every year, 57 billion, 167 billion, 300 billion?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: Well, before the break, we asked if you could guess how many pieces of mail the Postal Service handles every year? Is it 57 billion, 167 billion, 300 billion? The answer, B, $167 billion, about three billion pieces of mail every week, most of it landing in my recycle bin.

No one knows more about the financial crisis facing the United States Postal Service than the nation's postmaster general. Patrick Donahoe says the agency is $9 billion in the hole. He's going to Capitol Hill today to stress the need for Congress to take emergency action.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PATRICK DONAHOE, U.S. POSTMASTER GENERAL: On September 30, if we do not have relief from that fund, we will not be able to make a payment of $5.5 billion to the federal government. We will pay our employees, and we will pay our suppliers, because we're going to continue to deliver mail.

SEN. TOM CARPER (D), DELAWARE: If we do nothing, the Postal Service could literally close. They're bouncing up against their $15 billion line of credit limit. And if we do nothing, then they WikiLeaks, I think, run out of money.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GRIFFIN: So what's to do? Donahoe says he wants to cut costs by getting permission to stop Saturday mail, close more than 3,000 post office locations, and lay off 120,000 postal workers.

(WEATHER UPDATE)

GRIFFIN: Here's some of the stories our affiliates are covering across the country.

A man in Indiana, well, he can't afford to pay the $200,000 in taxes he owes for his office buildings, so he's putting them up for sale on eBay, asking price, $4.5 million for all three. The owner also appealing his property tax bill.

A bear in Lake Tahoe, California, tore up this family's Toyota Prius after taking it for a ride. The family saw the black better crawl through the window here, apparently hit the gearshift into neutral. The car rolled down the driveway and over several boulders before slamming into a neighbor's front porch. I wonder if that is Yogi.

And some volunteer chefs at the University of Massachusetts went for the record of the largest stir-fry ever. They used 800 pounds of chicken, almost 2,000 pounds of vegetables, and 200 pounds of canola oil.

Just a few weeks ago, Michele Bachmann was on top of the world. Now she's hurting in the polls and just lost a campaign manager. What does it all mean for her presidential run? Well, we will tell you in the CNN political track.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

GRIFFIN: There's a court hearing later today in Jackson, Mississippi, involving a hate crime, according to a prosecutor, a black autoworker killed for one reason, he was black, killed allegedly by one man, along with six other white teenagers who on a Saturday evening went out and sought to kill a man just because he was black.

The family of that victim's attorney is joining us now, Winston Thompson.

The family has also filed a lawsuit today, a civil lawsuit today.

And, Winston, why? Why did the family choose to go this route and file a lawsuit?

WINSTON J. THOMPSON III, ATTORNEY: Well, the family was waiting on the criminal investigation to be complete, but another thing that is available to the family is a civil lawsuit.

In a civil lawsuit, you get money damages, but also it will allow us to do some discovery, take some depositions, and see if we can find out from all seven of these individuals exactly what took place on June 26 and the events leading up to June 26.

GRIFFIN: The surveillance video, the police investigations and the witness statements show that these seven teenagers allegedly partied that night and then went to Jackson, Mississippi, some 16 miles away, searching for anyone to beat up.

Surveillance video shows that attack happening. Yet, just one person, Deryl Dedmon, has been charged with the crime of murder. I know the family has been somewhat critical of the Hinds County district attorney for not filing additional charges. Is the family still upset that prosecutors have not filed charges against all seven of these white teenagers who were there that night?

THOMPSON: Well, the investigation is still ongoing. Local authorities are involved, as well as the Justice Department and the FBI. And so the family is hopeful that, at the conclusion of those investigations, that any and all individuals that were present on June 26, if they have any culpability, then they will be charged. So the family is still waiting. GRIFFIN: Have you had any access? You said you can take depositions now that you have filed this lawsuit. Have you had any access to any of the people involved in this crime?

THOMPSON: No, I haven't. Not at this point, I have not.

GRIFFIN: Deryl Dedmon's attorney said in court that this crime was not racially motivated. What's your answer to that?

THOMPSON: Well, I think it speaks for itself. Every indication to me and I think the prosecutors is that this was a hate crime, that it was a racially motivated crime, and that these individuals set out that night to come to Jackson to find a black person and do harm to him. And I think that's what it shows, and I think that's what it is.

GRIFFIN: Mr. Thompson, having reported on this crime and been in Jackson and in the Rankin County, where these teenagers came from, I think I expressed to you how surprised I was at the lack of outrage in both Hinds County and in Rankin County.

Now that this lawsuit has been filed, now that the news has gotten out about some of the facts in this case, do you feel that this crime has not gotten the attention from the various communities there in Mississippi that it deserves?

THOMPSON: Well, I think initially people were in shock and they wanted to -- some people took a wait-and-see approach.

But the outpouring of support that we have received, the family has received from within Hinds County and actually people from Rankin County has been tremendous. We have had a number of groups, civic organizations, that have come forward and said they want to help. They denounced this kind of action. And they want to make sure that this never happens again.

So the family has been very encouraged with the outpouring of support from the community. And we just hope that it continues.

GRIFFIN: All right, Winston Thompson, the attorney for the family of James Craig Anderson, Mr. Thompson, thank you for joining us live this day.

They have filed a lawsuit against the seven teenagers involved in this murder, according to the prosecutor.

Thank you, sir.

Well, big changes for Michele Bachmann's inner circle.

Mark Preston, part of the best political team on television.

Love saying that, Mark.

Just a couple weeks ago, Bachmann was considered a front-runner in this race. Now there's staff changes on her campaign team and drops in polls, I guess. MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Yes.

You know, Drew, after the Iowa straw poll, well, you would have expected that Michele Bachmann would have got a huge jump, seeing the fact that she won this very early critical contest. The problem was, was that Rick Perry announced that he was running for president on the same day and really deflated all the air out of that.

We just learned last night that Ed Rollins, who used to be a CNN contributor here, have left her campaign -- he was the campaign manager -- as has the deputy campaign manager. They have both left.

Now, Ed last night on "A.C. 360" said he is leaving because of health reasons. He said that he had a stroke about a year-and-a-half ago, he was 68 years old, and that the rigors of daily campaigning was really too much on him.

But the fact is Michele Bachmann is really the third candidate -- and I have to say this is what Ed Rollins said last night -- she's the third candidates in the race, and right now this race for the Republican presidential nomination is between Rick Perry and Mitt Romney -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: Yes. And let's talk about Perry, because even though he missed yesterday's Republican forum, it sounds he still found a way to burn to his top competitor in the race for this nomination.

PRESTON: Yes. Rick Perry really only been in the race for, what, just about a month now. And he really has decided to take it to Mitt Romney, who was the front-runner.

Polling now shows that Rick Perry is leading the pack. And he was supposed to appear at a forum yesterday in South Carolina. He had to head back to Texas because those devastating wildfires are really tearing apart his state. However, he was critical of Mitt Romney when it comes to the whole issue of jobs. This election is going to be all about the economy.

In fact, Drew, this is what he said about Mitt Romney: "There is one in particular that's created jobs all over the world. But while he was the governor of Massachusetts, he didn't create very many jobs."

So before Rick Perry left South Carolina to get back to Texas yesterday, he decided to take a poke at Mitt Romney -- Drew.

GRIFFIN: All right, Mark Preston, a lot of moving and shaking going on in that Republican race. Thank you, Mark.

And for the latest political news, you know where to go, CNNPolitics.com.

The mother of all muscle spasms cramps Rafael Nadal's style at the U.S. Open news conference. Our Jeanne Moos was watching.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) GRIFFIN: We have all had agonizing leg cramps, but apparently not as bad as some tennis stars.

Rafael Nadal proved that at a news conference at the U.S. Open.

Here's Jeanne Moos.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): When tennis star Rafael Nadal sank lower, then lower and lower in the middle of a press conference, it was unlike anything we'd seen before. Unlike the time Marie Osmond just fainted on "Dancing with the Stars." People are always fainting in public, from a spelling bee finalist to a guest on Glenn Beck's old show, to audience members lulled into unconsciousness by politicians.

BILL CLINTON, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Everybody agrees are there.

MOOS: But Nadal didn't pass out. He cramped up, grimacing, covering his face with his arm, and repeatedly sighing.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Can I do anything?

RAFAEL NADAL, TENNIS STAR: No.

MOOS: He did ask someone to call the trainers.

(on camera) Forget tennis elbow. Nadal has set a new standard of pain for the leg cramp. You know that thing most of us have at night in bed?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This knot and twist and you get up. Oh, my God, OK. Let me walk this off, let me walk this off. And you're like...

MOOS: Except Nadal couldn't even walk. He slid to the floor with his right hand slamming his thigh, cramping.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, I think we'll put -- draw and end to the press conference. If you would all mind leaving...

MOOS: After almost ten minutes of massage, ice packs and Gatorade, Nadal was fine. He told CBS Sports that the humidity during the match he'd just won was probably to blame. And he said he gets cramps often.

NADAL: Yes, a lot of times: yes, nothing new. But you know, not during the press conference.

MOOS: There was more spastic muscle cramping at the U.S. Open. Oh, wait, that's dancing. The spectator in the stands was imitated on the court by Novak Djokovic. The two later danced together.

Of course, Rafael Nadal's tennis cramp could have happened at an even worse time. What if his leg stiffened during one of his Armani underwear ad shoots? Tennis fans posted remedies: "Yellow mustard helps. One spoonful every night has stopped cramps for me." The people's pharmacy noted "some people keep mustard packets at their bedside to eat, not rub."

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is it cramped up?

MOOS: Maybe Rafael Nadal could improve his serve by serving mustard.

Jeanne Moos, CNN, New York.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

GRIFFIN: Up next: It's a hacking scandal that shut down a newspaper, sent shockwaves through a media empire. How far does it go and what does it mean for Rupert Murdoch's company? We are going to go live to London to find out.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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Well, Britain is reeling from this hacking scandal at the tabloid newspaper "News of the World" and reporters there were allegedly listening in on voice-mail message of everyone from actor Hugh Grant to the royal family. The paper has since closed its doors. But, today, Parliament is grilling its top editors to find out just how far this scandal went.

Atika Shubert is joining us live from London.

And, Atika, it's been going on for months now. What's the focus of the investigation today?

ATIKA SHUBERT, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the big question today is, what did James Murdoch know about phone hacking and when did he know it?

You might recall that just a few weeks ago, he told members of Parliament that he had no evidence at the time that phone hacking scandal was any more than one rogue reporter who had done that phone hacking.

That, however, contradicts what several executives told members of Parliament today. They say that they had a 15-minute discussion with James Murdoch several years ago where they showed him a particular e-mail that had a transcript of a hacked voice-mail message. That voice-mail message was supposed to go to "News of the World"'s top reporter.

And it certainly seems to indicate that hacking was much more widespread than one single reporter at the newspaper. And it does seem that James Murdoch discussed that with them.

Now the question is, are members of Parliament going to recall James Murdoch and make him testify before Parliament again?

GRIFFIN: And I guess the other big question is, does it go beyond "News of the World"? James Murdoch and his father, Rupert Murdoch, own News Corp. They run this huge mega-company. Any effect that this new testimony will have on the bigger company?

SHUBERT: We have to wait and see, but yes.

As you know, there are several investigations under way, not just the parliamentary investigation. There is also a judicial inquiry, and that wider inquiry is going to be looking to see whether or not other newspapers, other media may have been involved with the phone hacking.

Remember, News International also owns "The Sun," which is the most widely read daily newspaper here in Britain. So there will be a lot of scrutiny now on not just News International, but in fact all British media, just to see how endemic was this culture of phone hacking here.

GRIFFIN: Yes. Is the business done today over there, Atika? Have they decided what's next in the case, deciding whether or not to call James or not?

SHUBERT: Not quite yet.

I mean, the parliamentary hearing has finished. And they are still deciding whether or not to call James Murdoch, but we are actually waiting to hear from Prime Minister Cameron. He at the moment is taking questions from another committee in Parliament. And he is expected to address the hacking scandal. We're just waiting to see when he gets a question on that.

GRIFFIN: All right, Atika, we will wait for that. Atika Shubert live from London -- thanks, Atika.