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Memorial Dedicated to Flight 93; Security Sweep at Ground Zero; Tight Security Ahead of 9/11 Anniversary

Aired September 10, 2011 - 22:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN NEWSROOM: You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Don Lemon in Tampa, Florida, tonight where preparations are under way for Monday's CNN Tea Party Republican debate. We begin, though, with the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

Here, security is extra high tonight as final preparations are made for Sunday's dedication of the 9/11 memorial site at Ground Zero. A massive police presence rolled into Lower Manhattan just a short time ago as part of a security sweep. A hunt is on right now for three stolen trucks, including two that belong to a company that worked at Ground Zero. We'll take you live to the site in just a few minutes, but first --

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Leroy Homer.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Earlier today, the 40 people who died aboard United Airlines Flight 93 were remembered at a dedication ceremony in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. George W. Bush who was president when the 9/11 attacks happened and former President Bill Clinton were among the dignitaries to speak at today's dedication.

The site features a long marble wall with the names of the Flight 93 passengers and crew. They are credited with fighting back against the hijackers and preventing the plane from reaching its target.

President Obama has proclaimed this weekend National Days of Prayer and Remembrance. He will attend 10th anniversary events tomorrow in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania.

Today, the president and first lady paid their respects to fallen troops at Arlington National Cemetery.

And along with the preparations to remember the victims and events of 9/11, there is anxiety tonight of another possible terror attack timed to the anniversary.

Our Susan Candiotti is standing by for us at Ground Zero.

Susan, just a short time ago, we saw police making a very public security sweep. You were standing above the West Side Highway overlooking the memorial when we saw you last time here on CNN. That sweep was happening live. You have since moved. Why?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, they're just conducting a security sweep from our position overlooking that memorial. But right now we're down on the street and it's a completely different atmosphere. We can no longer look over the memorial, but here, different situation. This is mainly a commercial district, not residential. So it's quiet anyway at night.

Taking a look now, we're in a pendent area where our movements are restricted. But as you can see, there's a bit of traffic now. And looking down the street as well, you can see the Ground Zero is just beyond there where all the lights are. You see the high rises. And there you see looming ahead of you, this is one World Trade Center. It is the -- going to be the largest building they say in the country and possibly the Western hemisphere. It's also going to be -- being built as the safest and strongest, much stronger than the World Trade Center was so many years ago.

I had a personal tour there earlier in the week. And if you can make it out on camera, you can see that the building is bathed at this hour in red, white and blue, red on the bottom, white in the middle, blue at the top. This is the -- going to be the tallest, already is the tallest building on New York's skyline.

LEMON: Yes, I'm glad, Susan. Thank you so much for taking our viewers to Manhattan. Traffic was really at a standstill earlier when you showed the video, when we saw you live last time. But now traffic seems to be whizzing by on the Westside Highway.

Listen, we want to know, there's some of the events earlier tonight. You can see a wall of police cars and red lights there on the Westside Highway and really surrounding the entire Ground Zero area there, property there. Listen, I want to talk to you as we look at this video, what about the investigation as I've told our viewers? They were saying there were these stolen trucks and some possible suspects. Update us on that.

CANDIOTTI: That's right. Well, first let's talk about those -- the investigation into those suspects. We have new details that developed today about the timing involved here. As you know, they've been looking at the possibly three men who might be involved in the terror plot. And they determined that two of the three might have been traveling to the United States last week.

However, we are learning tonight from our sources that so far, no leads have panned out, that definitely put those people in the United States. However, of course, investigators continue to work under the assumption that they may have made it here and they're continuing to track down those leads as best they can.

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

Susan, stand by. We may be getting back to you because we're going to speak very shortly with New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly live here on CNN, and get an update on all that information. You know, it's not the specific nature of the terror threat that has many people on edge. It is the timing. The tenth anniversary of 9/11 is a historic moment. And I spoke about its significance with former FBI Assistant Director Tom Fuentes.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TOM FUENTES, FORMER FBI ASSISTANT DIRECTOR: If they can do that tomorrow or over this weekend, it ensures everlasting fame that they pulled it off on the ten-year anniversary. And I think that that's what the authorities are concerned with, not just the people that may have been dispatched from Pakistan or other reports that have come up over the weekend that come up all the time. Those are almost daily reports that come in, but that somebody that's not even on the radar is sitting alone and has already decided they're going to be very famous if they can do anything at all tomorrow.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Well, make sure you stay with CNN all day Sunday for extensive special coverage of the 10th anniversary of 9/11 and stay tuned tonight. We're going to speak with Police Commissioner Ray Kelly live on this broadcast.

And you'll hear this hour, you'll see John King's interview with Vice President Joe Biden, his predecessor as Dick Cheney recently defended waterboarding as a deterrent. Biden pushes back with some very harsh words, that ahead later this hour on CNN.

Shanksville, Pennsylvania, was the place where the fourth hijacked airliner crashed before it could reach its target. The 40 passengers and crew of United Airlines Flight 93 were remembered today at a dedication of a new memorial to their heroism.

CNN's David Mattingly was there.

DAVID MATTINGLY, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Ten years ago, Shanksville, Pennsylvania, was the site of a violent act of terrorism. There was a great deal of uncertainty, fear, and anger surrounding this site. Well, today we find it completely transformed. This pastoral setting now very peaceful with grasses and wildflowers growing everywhere.

The dedication of this memorial today was for the bravery and courage of the passengers and crew of Flight 93. And it was emotional time not just for the family members of the people on board that plane, but also for former President George W. Bush.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FMR. PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: With their selfless act, the men and women who stormed the cockpit lived out the words "greater love hath no man than this than a man lay down his life for his friends." With their brave decision, they launched the first counteroffensive of the war on terror.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MATTINGLY: But through all the ceremonies today, there was a sense of a job that has not yet been finished. Former President Clinton called attention to the fact that this memorial site has not yet been completed. Ten years after the crash of Flight 93, they're still trying to raise the funds needed to get every feature that they've designed for this location actually erected and available to the public.

He called on everyone to donate to the cause and to get this memorial finished. He borrowed a line from Todd Beamer, one of the passengers on board Flight 93 when the former president said, "Let's roll and let's get this monument finished."

David Mattingly, CNN, Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

LEMON: All right, David. It was one of the most poignant moments in the days following the September 11th terrorist attacks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: I can hear you, the rest of the world hears you. And the people --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The New York City firefighter who inspired some inspirational remarks by then President Bush. He joins us live -- next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: You may not know his face but his voice is a part of one of the most iconic moments following the September 11th attacks.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

BUSH: As we mourn the loss of thousands of our citizens --

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I can't hear you.

BUSH: I can hear you! I can hear you! The rest of the world hears you. And the people -- and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: What a moment that was. Everybody remembers that moment. That was firefighter Rocco Chierichella. He is a retired New York City firefighter who shouted to President Bush to speak up as the president spoke to a crowd at Ground Zero just three days after the attacks.

Rocco joins us now live from New York.

Rocco, you know, you were already retired on September 11th but you rushed to the scene...

ROCCO CHIERICHELLA, 9/11 FIRST RESPONDER: That's correct.

LEMON: ...to help with the rescue effort. What went through your head to do that when you saw that happening?

CHIERICHELLA: I didn't get that last part, Don.

LEMON: I said, what went through your head for you to run into those buildings, and to run to help people when you saw it happening?

CHIERICHELLA: Well, I'd been a New York City firefighter. I was retired. I want to make sure that that's understood because I went down that night, but watching as a kid, you know, those buildings being built, every week they added a floor and to see it all now on the ground and 32 acres of a pile of junk with 3,000 people's lives in there, and at that time, we didn't know how many people were in there. We're talking 10,000. You've got to remember, the numbers they were ordering body bags by the thousands claiming this was going to be bigger and worse than what it was. But 3,000 people were in there, and the focus was on trying to hope and pray that there was somebody alive in there.

And I know they got a few people out in the beginning, but hope was diminishing fast. And as the moment and hours were going by, it was fruitless to think that anybody was going to be alive in that pile of rubble.

LEMON: You know, it's ten years. It's a big anniversary. But I'm wondering for someone who had direct involvement like you, does it make a difference, one year, two years, six years, ten years?

CHIERICHELLA: Every year is -- every day's important, especially being a New Yorker. You know, and seeing what's going on today with the alerts and the constant threat to our freedoms that we've grown accustomed to over the last ten years. You know, it's always engrained in your memory.

So especially being a New York City firefighter that knows what his brothers and the rescue workers that were immediately called on down there, they didn't know this was an act of war. This was the first plane hit the building. The guys did their job. They went in that building immediately. When the second plane hit the building, the tables were turned and now to think that we're now in a war zone. This is not a regular fire. T his is not a high-rise fire. This is a war zone.

And some people say to me, well, you know, you guys get paid to do this job. But I said after the second plane, you think possibly there was a third plane coming or a fourth plane coming? We didn't know what to expect. These firefighters didn't know what to expect at that point but they were brave.

LEMON: Nobody had any idea.

CHIERICHELLA: They showed what they do. LEMON: Yes, nobody had any idea and they don't call you New York's bravest for nothing. So, listen, I want to ask you, what compelled you to shout out to the president, and what did his response mean to you at the time?

CHIERICHELLA: You got to remember, Don, I -- it was very important for the rescue workers that were involved with this effort down there. You know, we were in a bad state of mind those few days, and it was just trying to organize and get find the bodies for the families. But we needed something and the president came down, starred to speak and we were hoping for something.

And I couldn't hear him. That's the bottom line. I just couldn't hear him. And people were starting to say we can't hear you. And I just couldn't hear him. I said come on. I can't hear you, and then before you know it, he responded.

He lifted the crowd of rescue workers, and I didn't know it was going to be a historic moment. I didn't know that. And I think it pulled the country together at that point. It shaped President Bush's response at that time to what he needed to do and his administration, I guess. But I didn't know the full impact of it for me just not being able to hear him.

LEMON: Rocco Chierichella, a retired New York City firefighter. He was retired at the time of 9/11 and just jumped in to help save people.

Rocco, thank you so much. We appreciate your bravery, and we appreciate what you do. Take care of yourself, OK?

CHIERICHELLA: Thank you. Good night, Don.

LEMON: All right.

OK, as we mentioned to you at the beginning of this broadcast just a couple minutes ago, worries tonight about the fear of another terror attack surrounding the anniversary. It surrounds the anniversary of the September 11th attacks, and New York City Police Commissioner Ray Kelly joins us now by phone.

Commissioner, we know you're very busy right now, so we want to thank you up front for joining us.

What's the status of this terror threat?

RAYMOND KELLY, NYPD COMMISSIONER (via-telephone): Well, it's still ongoing. Nothing significant has changed. You know, the threat has been identified as being credible and specific, and uncorroborated. And that's pretty much where it stands. And we have taken this threat seriously. Obviously because it, you know, it coincides with the 10th anniversary, and we know that will Osama Bin Laden at least in the notes that were found after the SEALS eliminated him spoke about doing something on or near this anniversary.

As a matter of fact, the notes were the actually show that there was one discussion or treatment of this issue prior to 9/11/2010. So, we have to -- we have to take all threats seriously but this one in particular.

LEMON: So, listen, I know you can't talk too much about the investigation. Obviously you don't want to tip people off. But so far though, you haven't found anyone, any of the three men, nothing, nothing has been uncovered so far. Basically you're just on alert and you want people to be vigilant as well?

KELLY: That's correct. The mayor said the other night, we ask the public to go about what they're normally going to do, but to be vigilant, to look at their world through the prism of September 11th. Everyone's world changed and we say if anything out of the ordinary or anything suspicious, please give us a call. New York, that's 311, for non-emergencies and 911 for emergencies.

LEMON: Listen, what are you -- can you tell us anything about, we heard earlier about the possibility of stolen trucks and some suspects. Is there anything credible about that?

KELLY: Well, there were some stolen trucks. There was one truck, a Budget Econoline that was stolen in Jersey City two days ago. And obviously, in an area the size of the metropolitan area, probably population close to 20 million people, we have vehicles stolen every day.

But in this instance, the thieves took special precautions not to be seen, not to be detected. They disconnected all of the alarms, took the DVD out of the recording devices. And it struck the investigators in Jersey City as being particularly unusual and a lot of care shown in making certain that they weren't identified.

So, that vehicle is still out there. We obviously have a plate number and we're looking for the vehicle. There were two other trucks that were stolen on September 1st and 2nd. These belonged to a construction company that does work at the World Trade Center site. And had about $70,000 worth of tools in it collectively these two trucks.

So you know, most likely they were stolen for the tools, that's a whole lot of money for tools, but you know, in an abundance of caution, we are certainly looking in a much more intense way for these vehicles. But there's nothing at this time other than what I told you that would tied them into this threat.

LEMON: And if people may try to put two and two together, Commissioner, you have three suspects, three trucks stolen, but again for our viewers, you don't believe it has anything to do with terrorism, or you don't think the suspects are connected to the stolen trucks?

KELLY: Well, we're not ruling it out. But there's nothing, you know, of significance right now that would connect these thefts to the threat that you know, that we're facing.

LEMON: New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly. Thank you so much for taking time out on a busy night. And best of luck. And I'm sure you want everyone to stay safe there in New York City. Thank you, sir.

Up next here on CNN, a preview of the GOP contenders who will take the stage here in Tampa on Monday night for the CNN Tea Party Republican debate.

Our senior political editor Mr. Mark Preston joins me right after the break.

And a little bit later on this hour, talk show host and author Tavis Smiley shares his new initiative on education. It deals with the staggering dropout rate among African American males.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: For several weeks, Michele Bachmann could do no wrong in the eyes of Republican voters. The presidential candidate was sailing along until Texas Governor Rick Perry entered the race. With her campaign in trouble, can she get her mojo back at Monday night CNN's Tea Party Republican debate?

Our senior political editor Mark Preston joins us now live.

So, Mark, as I said, she could do no wrong, but on the same day she won the straw poll, Rick Perry made his announcement. Can she get her mojo back?

MARK PRESTON, CNN SENIOR POLITICAL EDITOR: Yes, you know, it took all the wind out of her sails, Don. You remember when we were in New Hampshire in June, Michelle Bachmann did fantastic in that CNN debate. The next morning we saw her doing interviews on CNN, and she was on top of the game. She's coming here now to Tampa. She needs to try to get back, because the fact of the matter is, Rick Perry got into the race. He took away all that Tea Party support that would propel her candidacy.

LEMON: Right. Yes, and now, people are now saying, you know, it's really a two-person race. Rick Perry who really just got in the race three and a half weeks ago, and then Mitt Romney. But they are, I guess, being pitted against each other and social security is the issue.

PRESTON: Yes, and social security is the issue. And could very well be the issue on Monday night here in Tampa. In fact, Mitt Romney is going after Rick Perry on his comments regarding social security saying it was a Ponzi scheme and didn't like it.

In fact, let's take a look at this flyers really quickly that Mitt Romney's campaign is distributing here in Florida as we speak to try to take Rick Perry down a little bit. Look what it says there. "Of the two candidates, only one will protect what's important to you." No subtle message there.

LEMON: No.

PRESTON: Especially in a state like Florida where social security is so important to seniors.

LEMON: Older voters. And it's targeted. It's targeted to the people who they think that it affects most, I'm sure.

PRESTON: No question.

LEMON: Yes. But, hey, what do the other candidates have to do on Monday night to come off looking like -- what could rid them all of. But do everyone besides Romney and Perry have to do on Monday.

PRESTON: Well, let's just single out Michele Bachmann very quickly. She needs to show up here, Don, and she needs to try to get back that tea party support. It would be interesting to see if she attacks Rick Perry.

Everyone else, not only do they need to show up, they need to breakthrough because they are so low in the polls right now, we're heading into a tough election season right now. If they can't get their mojo back certainly in front of this audience on Monday, their candidacies could be in a lot of trouble.

LEMON: Yes. And, you know, you never say never in politics. You know, we're saying, oh, well, it's over for these candidates, over for that candidate. And lots of candidates have been counted out before and then they come back.

PRESTON: John McCain back in 2007 if you remember. His campaign imploded not once but twice. We left him for dead. He turned it around. He came back. He won the Republican nomination. So you're absolutely right. You can never say never. But you know what? You need to get on your game.

LEMON: I think there is something about conventional wisdom up until now when it comes to the Tea Party, because they have certainly changed the game in many ways. And this debate is the first one of its kind ever. So I don't know. Michele Bachmann could come back. You know, as a winner. She could come back or any other candidates come back. We don't know.

PRESTON: You're absolutely right, but she needs to do better than just have a good performance. She needs to hit a grand slam. And how does she do that? Try to take on Rick Perry.

LEMON: All right. Thank you, sir. Always appreciate a good stuff, Mark Preston.

And you don't want to miss Monday night's Republican debate. It's co-hosted by CNN and the Tea Party at 8 p.m. Eastern here on CNN. We'll be live from here in Tampa, site of the 2012 Republican National Convention at the CNN Tea Party Republican debate, Monday night, 8 p.m. Eastern only here on CNN.

You know, there's been lots of buzz out there on social media about the tea party debate. I'm online, and I've been getting lots of messages from you. Make sure you connect with me on Facebook, on my blog at CNN.com/Don and on Twitter. Keep them coming. I'm certainly reading them all.

And what was it like on 9/11 for a child, from a child's perspective? President Bush was speaking to Danyelle Green's class when the terror attacks occurred. You're going to hear from her -- next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: When Danyelle Green was in second grade, she became a front row witness to history. It was her Florida class that President Bush was visiting when he learned about a second plane flying into the Twin Towers. Now 17, Green says it took her years to truly understand the meaning of those moments.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: You were what, second grade?

DANYELLE GREEN, PRESIDENT BUSH VISITED HER CLASS ON 9/11: Uh- huh.

LEMON: Do you even really remember it?

GREEN: I remember a little. Just a little. Not too much, but the things I remember, we read and someone came in from the side door and told him something. Then we continued to read. Then his face got red and he looked stunned. And then as we finished reading, he whispered something in our teacher's ear, then he got up and left. And then afterwards, after he left, they showed us videos about the towers falling.

LEMON: But you didn't really know. You said when you were in second grade, really, in elementary school and even in junior high school, you didn't realize how significant it was?

GREEN: No, not that much. I didn't realize until high school. Like ninth grade, I was a part of history.

LEMON: Really? It started to sink in in ninth grade. What started to sink in?

GREEN: Like about terrorism, and like what actually happened and all of it.

LEMON: How are the other kids doing? Does it affect, do you think you guys at all? Obviously, not like the people who lost loved ones, but does it affect you? Does it hold a special meaning for all of you?

GREEN: Uh-huh. I guess it brings us together because we did it as a group. It made us feel like, I don't know, closer in a way. It was happy for us but sad for others.

LEMON: What do you want people to know about being there on that day, witnessing the president, the expression on his face or the teacher trying to explain it to you, and then the ten years that have passed since? What do you want the whole world to know about you kids and you?

GREEN: Actually, what I really want is for like teachers to like even though they're in elementary school, they still talk about terrorism and what happens when it happens like, I want them to actually teach the kids so they won't be like, "oh, well I don't know what that is," like we were when we were young.

LEMON: It has to make you feel sad when you think what it stands for.

GREEN: Yes, it made me feel sad. Even though it was a good day for us, who was with the president, because it was a great opportunity, but for the other people who lost loved ones and people they really care about -- it was very sad.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: Danyelle Green. Now 17 years old.

New Jersey dedicated its own remarkable memorial today on the banks of the Hudson River. The empty sky memorial consists of twin walls etched with the names of the 746 people from New Jersey who lost their lives on 9/11.

The walls point toward Lower Manhattan and the skyline that once included the Twin Towers. Governor Chris Christie spoke at the dedication and vowed the Garden State would never forget those lost on September 11th.

A security alert forces an evacuation at Dulles Airport outside Washington, D.C.

And there are new worries now about another terror threat causes a security sweep in New York.

You're looking at live pictures now. All of this coming on the 9/11 tenth anniversary. We'll have a live report after the break.

Also, floodwaters in Pennsylvania are receding, but residents may not have the homes to return to.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

SUSAN HENDRICKS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, there. I'm Susan Hendricks at the CNN Headquarters in Atlanta. Back to Don in Tampa in just a moment. But first, a check of the top stories that we're following.

In New York, security is especially tight right now at Ground Zero ahead of Sunday's 10th anniversary of 9/11. A short time ago, police performed a massive, very public security sweep of the area. A site where the Twin Towers once stood will be formally dedicated as a memorial. Police are on edge as you can imagine because intelligence out of Pakistan suggests a terror threat could be in the works.

In Pennsylvania today, take a listen. All 40 names being read, including an unborn baby at a dedication ceremony in Shanksville on the eve of the 10th anniversary of September 11th. Former Presidents George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, as well as Vice President Joe Biden were there to honor the heroic actions of passengers and crew aboard United Airlines Flight 93. The marble wall is inscribed with the names of 40 passengers and crew members who fought back, fought the hijackers and prevented the plane from reaching its targets.

President Obama and the first lady visited Arlington National Cemetery to pay their condolences to families mourning loved ones who served in the military. They visited a section of the cemetery where soldiers who served in Iraq and Afghanistan are buried. The president has proclaimed this weekend as national days of prayer and remembrance. Obama is expected to attend memorial services in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania.

It has been a brutal year in Texas. The state is experiencing its driest ten months since 1895. Really, on the record books. And to make matters worse, firefighters say they spotted 24 new wildfires today. That's in addition to 179 wildfires that crews are battling this past week that have charred more than 170,000 acres and destroyed more than 1400 homes so far. The president declared an emergency in Texas on Friday, paving the way for federal aid.

The floodwaters are beginning to recede in the State of Pennsylvania, and in the northeast, which is much needed there. The evacuation orders may soon be lifted. But the governor warns many families may have no place to go back to, their homes destroyed after flooding wiped out their families. More than 2,000 homes we're looking at. Many neighborhoods are still underwater and more rain is in the forecast. The flooding from Tropical Storm Lee killed at least nine people and forced the evacuation of 100,000 in Central Pennsylvania and Upstate New York, as well.

Frightening moments on the field today. University of Minnesota football coach Jerry Kill suffered a seizure late in the game against New Mexico state. After 15 minutes on the field, the coach was taken to a hospital where he is reported in stable condition. The team doctor says the coach's vital signs were normal and perhaps the heat combined with dehydration affected him a bit. The seizure occurred as the team was driving from what would have been a tying touch down. Now this is the third time in his career that Coach Jerry Kill has had a seizure on game day. We wish him well.

Now back to Don in Tampa, Florida. Don?

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

Intelligence agencies investigate the latest terror threat. A report from Washington is next.

Plus, Vice President Joe Biden's criticism of waterboarding under his predecessor Dick Cheney's watch. Well, it is a CNN exclusive. It's right after the break. But first on this eve of the 10th anniversary of 9/11, our CNN Hero is a New Yorker who was deeply move by the outpouring of help his city received after the attacks. In 2004, Jeff Parness established a non-profit that sends volunteers from New York to rebuild other disaster-stricken communities. Take a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: September 11th was a very tough time for the fire department. I lost some friends, guys I went to the academy with.

The day afterwards, people came from everywhere to help us out. It was incredible. You knew you weren't alone.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you, guys.

JEFF PARNESS, COMMUNITY CRUSADER: For a New Yorker to see that outpouring of kindness and generosity was more powerful than the terror that happened. That really changed me.

I'm Jeff Parness, and I just want to show the world that New Yorkers will never forget what people did for us following 9/11.

Every year on the 9/11 anniversary, we take volunteers from New York and send them to some part of the country where they had a disaster and help folks rebuild.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nice to meet you.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You pull into town and the tallest thing there is the grain silo. It's definitely a bit of a culture shock.

PARNESS: Rebuilding homes or barns or churches, it's our way to say thank you. Now, more than half our volunteers are not from New York. People from all the small towns that we've helped, they keep showing up to help the next community. They're from Louisiana and California and Indiana and Illinois. Every year, you keep seeing more T-shirts from more locations.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're going to pitch in as much as we can.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: After Katrina, we just jumped on his bandwagon. This whole paying it forward thing is just contagious.

PARNESS: It's like this big dysfunctional family reunion of all these disaster survivors who get together and do a barn-raising.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They're banging nails and building something, but it's the relationships that'll help you heal.

PARNESS: It's about using the 9/11 anniversary to celebrate that volunteer spirit.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We'll see you all next year.

PARNESS: People say thank you for doing this. I say, you want to thank me? Show up on the next one.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Vice President Joe Biden was in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, today for the dedication of a memorial to the passengers and crew of United Airlines Flight 93. He praised the courage of those on the plane who fought the hijackers causing the plane to crash before reaching its target.

He also talked with CNN's John King about the current threat against the U.S., and said he couldn't rule out any other attack in the future.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: We're having a conversation at a time when the country is dealing with what we are told is a specific and credible terrorist threat. What more do we know after the initial intelligence?

JOSEPH BIDEN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: We haven't been able to confirm what was credible information we got. We've already were beefing up for the 10th anniversary. When we took out Bin Laden and got information out of his compound that his intention was encouraging his followers to do this. And then we didn't hear a thing until several days ago, and there came credible information stream.

KING: Any evidence the guys in that stream have entered the United States?

BIDEN: I -- I'm not going to comment on that.

KING: Why?

BIDEN: We have not been able to confirm the credible evidence we received.

KING: Well, I want to read you something you said. Senator Joe Biden said on September 12th, your first speech after the terrorist attacks. "I see in this cataclysmic tragedy the beginning of the end of organized, legitimized terrorist activities."

BIDEN: I believed that then, and I think we are getting close. We have done great damage to the most unified and lethal organization al Qaeda. They are less coordinated. They are less capable, and we're relentless in pursuing them.

KING: The enhanced interrogation tactics and waterboarding, your predecessor, the former vice president talking in the context of this specific threat we're worried about today. He says, "If you were still using those tactics, maybe there would be a detainee somewhere where you get this intelligence out of Pakistan, you scrub that detainee, you use those tactics, you might have more information." BIDEN: I've been engaged in this for 36 years. The Senate Chairman of Foreign Relations Committee, member of the Intelligence Committee, Vice President of the United States involved in this issue. I've seen zero evidence that it works. And I think there's abundant evidence that it hurts us internationally and hurts our security by making a mockery who we say we are and giving rationale for those who want to do us harm to recruit people. So I would argue the opposite.

KING: I think a question a lot of Americans will ask on the 10th anniversary is, am I safer?

BIDEN: Yes, you are safer. We have made a real dent in al Qaeda. They are less capable. We have much more coordination with our international partners. We have much more coordination between the FBI and our local law enforcement. Homeland Security has made considerable investments to make our airports and the rest safer.

But look, John, there is always the possibility of a lone wolf. There's always a possibility of an incident occurring. But I do not believe there's anyone right now the capable of putting together the kind of extremely complicated planned operation that took place on 9/11.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: And you can see the rest of John's interview with the vice president on Monday's "JOHN KING USA." That's at 7:00 Eastern only here on CNN.

Talk show host and author Tavis Smiley is next with an important new report on education and a staggering dropout rate among African- American males. We're back in two minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: In tonight's "What Matters," our partnership with "Essence" magazine, we focus on one of America's long-time challenges that seems to be getting worse, especially in this tough economy.

I'm talking about the plight of young African-American males who drop out of school and get into a life of crime and eventually prison. This Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m., PBS looks at the problem with a special Tavis Smiley reports. It's called "Too Important to Fail."

Tavis Smiley joins me now from New York.

Tavis, thank you so much for joining us. You know, you get right to the source and ask young black men about why they didn't stay in school.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

TAVIS SMILEY, "TAVIS SMILEY REPORTS": So help me understand that. I think I get that we understand it. It was interesting, but you weren't paying attention so why not -- if it's interesting, why not pay attention. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I grew up like, when I was 8, my sister got killed in front of me. I'm going to school, being suspended, kicked out and sent back home and stuff like that.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So Tavis, listen, there's no question that these young men experience what no child should ever have to experience or live through. But you know, Tavis, many like them get beyond it. So did you learn specifically about why these teens end up on the wrong path?

SMILEY: In short because they are a disposable generation. Too often young black men, young black boys in this country, Don, as you well know having done this work for years, too often they're rendered invisible. They are disposable unless and until they get caught up say in a flash mob in Philadelphia or some other major American city. Then all of a sudden, when they're in trouble, we want to pay attention to them.

The bottom line is, we either pay on the front side of this country, or we pay on the back end. And I'm suggesting in the special that we've got to pay more attention on the front end to the lives of these young black boys who, again, too often are rendered invisible in this country.

I'm sitting, as you mentioned in New York City right now, I live in L.A., work in L.A. but I'm in New York to participate in a number of 9/11 activities. And it seems to me that the best things, the best we can ever do for any slain American or Americans is to do our part to make America a better nation, to make America a country as good as it's promised -- politically, socially, economically and culturally.

I suspect if you would have talk to those folk who perished on that day, tomorrow, 10 years ago here in New York City. Most of them I'm sure would tell you that education for them was the great equalizer. They were allowed to work in this history building, this historic center in this great city in part because education gave them an opportunity.

So for all Americans, regardless of race, color or creed, education still has to be the great equalizer. We can't leave complete generations, or groups of persons behind in America.

LEMON: Yes, and I'm glad you mentioned why you're in New York. You got a little bit ahead of me. I was going to ask you that, so thanks for mentioning that.

Listen, I think that people categorize this problem like poverty overall. You keep fighting, but there's no real solution.

After you're reporting, is there a way that you see that we can increase the number of black male high school graduates?

SMILEY: Well, the good news is again, you've reported on this before. There are all kinds of examples that work in this country. The Promise academies in Philadelphia. Urban Prep in Chicago. There's a wonderful program for young men who are incarcerated in Alameda County in Oakland. I went to L.A. and to Oakland and to Philly and Chicago not just to look at the problem, but to consider some solutions. So clearly there are things that work. But so often in this country, we look right past good ideas because we're so aware to political ideology and we don't really focus our energies or time trying to replicate, trying to scale up those things that work.

So clearly on this special Tuesday night on PBS, we're going to talk about the challenges, about the crisis. But I would never do work without offering and without pointing us to some solutions. We can arrest this development like anything else in America. What are our priorities? How much does it matter to us?

LEMON: Yes, I think you're reading my mind, Tavis, because I was going to say there are a number of solutions. And then I looked at the video as you're speaking. I saw Urban Prep Academy, which is a great example especially with a number of young men they have going to college, graduating high school and going to great colleges at that.

People are going to say, why focus on young black men? Why not do just young black people?

SMILEY: That's a very good question. The cooperation for public broadcasting, CPB, which funds much of the work that PBS and NPR do, public TV and public radio do, funded by CPB, for the next couple of years, they are engaged in a program called The American Graduate Program.

And so on public television and public radio for the next two or three years, you're going to see a very concentrated effort, these are going to be our programming targeting how we turn around the education process in this country. So this for me is one of a number of primetime specials we're going to be doing on PBS.

The first one happens to focus on the crisis of young black boys. But your question is prescient and it's brilliant. At the end of the day, these are our children. And the price, the cost that we pay in this country long-term for ignoring wholesale groups of people, even young black boys is the price we really don't want to pay.

And we talk about what the costs to this society are when we ignore, again, large sectors of our society here again. We can't do that if we think America is going to ever close the gap between the have gots and the have nots in this country. If America is ever going to be a great nation again, we're going to have to make sure that nobody literally gets left behind. Too many folk are being left behind and the group being left the farthest behind are young black boys.

Imagine very quickly here the irony of us celebrating, Don, you're a black man, I'm a black man, surprise, surprise. We celebrate the election of the first African-American president of these United States. And at that very moment, black folk are falling deeper into poverty. We're following farther behind in education. That irony is not lost on me, and I'm not going to stand by and let history regard our generation as having done nothing about this issue while we celebrate a black man in the White House, but black people by and large, politically, socially, economically are catching hell.

LEMON: Hey, Tavis, thank you. Listen, you do this every night. I'm up against the clock here. You know how that is. We deal in time. Give us a Web site before we run.

SMILEY: PBS.org/TavisSmiley.

LEMON: All right, Tavis, thank you very much. 8:00 p.m. on Tuesday. PBS. It's a special Tavis Smiley report, it's called "Too Important to Fail."

Thank you for your time, sir.

And coming up, Libya's opposition fighters go after one of Gadhafi's last strongholds but face resistance. Your top stories straight ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: In New York City, security is especially tight right now at Ground Zero. Ahead of Sunday's 10th anniversary of 9/11. You're looking at live pictures.

A short time ago, police performed a massive, very public security sweep of the area, the site where the Twin Towers once stood will be formally dedicated as a memorial. Police are on edge because intelligence out of Pakistan suggests a terror threat could be in the works.

Fighters loyal to Libya's new government are on the outskirts of Bani Walid, a town loyal to former leader Moammar Gadhafi. The town's tribal leaders refuse to surrender despite a threat of a new military offensive if they don't. The anti-Gadhafi forces faced heavy fire when they tried to cease the town today.

I'm Don Lemon live in Tampa, Florida. I'll be seeing you back here tomorrow night at 6:00, 7:00, 8:00 and 11:00 p.m. Eastern. Good night.