Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Interview with Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee on Obama's Speech Tonight; Gay Teen Who Fought Bullying Takes Own Life; Millionaire Guilty of Murdering Wife; Freed American Hikers On Their Way Home; Obama To Talk Jobs at CBC Dinner

Aired September 24, 2011 - 17:00   ET

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

DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Don Lemon, thank you so much for joining us. We're going to begin tonight in Florida, where a jury has returned a guilty verdict in the murder trial of millionaire Bob Ward.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We the jury find the defendant guilty of second- degree murder as charged in the information.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, this trial lasted for about a week. Ward argued his wife died in 2009 of an accidental of gunshot to the face. The jury wasn't convinced. They found Ward guilty today of second-degree murder. Ward's daughters, they sobbed when the verdict came down and prosecutors had hammered away at inconsistencies in Ward's story, plus, the fact that he calmly admitted five times, five times in the initial 911 call that he had shot his wife. Listen to that.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

OPERATOR: Sir, what's the emergency?

BOB WARD, MILLIONAIRE: I just shot my wife.

OPERATOR: You just what?

WARD: I just shot my wife.

OPERATOR: Where is your wife?

WARD: She's right here on the floor.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. And then there was this bizarre jailhouse video just days after his wife died, Ward apparently, you see him there performing a strip tease for his daughter and his sister-in-law. All three acted like him being arrested was a big joke in that video.

So, I want to bring in now legal expert Holly Hughes, she is a criminal defense attorney and a former prosecutor. And first of all Holly, Bob Ward was a millionaire. He presumably had a high caliber defense team I would imagine. Did the defense make a mistake here?

HOLLY HUGHES, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: No. The defense was stuck with what their client had already said, Don. We just played that tape for the listeners. And, you know, when you very calmly say five times I shot my wife and you don't at the time you're not hysterical.

LEMON: There's no urgency, nothing in his voice.

HUGHES: Right. And he's not hysterical. He's nothing get here and help her. So, they're stuck with the statements that their client made. So, the best they could do is say, well, yes, he already admitted firing the gun but what we can do is now say, it accidentally went off. He didn't intend to fire the gun. She was trying to kill herself. So, unfortunately sometimes by the time a lawyer gets a case, the client has already put them in a bad position.

LEMON: All right. So, listen, more on what you're talking about. Prosecutors say Ward changed his story, Holly. First, he told 911, he shot his wife. You heard him very calmly there. But when police interviewed him, he said this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

WARD: It was an accident and I will tell you more about it later. But you know it was a very tragic accident and other than that, all I wish I could do was (bleep) shot myself in the (bleep) head and go on.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. So again, he's also very calm there. Now, according to -- this type of gun, it would be very hard for her to do this. Number one, as we've been talking she's right handed and she was shot...

HUGHES: In the left side of the face. That's exactly right. What we're talking about here Don is trajectory. The path a bullet takes through the body. She's shot in the left side of the nostril. She's a right-handed lady and the experts on both sides testified that the gun would have had to have been 14 to 18 inches away from the wound, so think about how a woman could possibly do that. You could not twist your arm in that direction because there's no stippling which is the powder burns from the gun powder, escaping the barrel of the gun on her face.

LEMON: No powder burns?

HUGHES: No stippling.

LEMON: How strong do you have to be to fire that gun?

HUGHES: This is a big gun. This is a 357 magnum. It has a 12 pound pressure poll. And to break that down from viewers, that means, you've got to stick your finger on that trigger and exert 12 pounds of pressure to get that gun to fire. That is not something that accidentally goes off. Now, we've already determined, it could have been her finger on the trigger. So, the reason his story fails is if he's struggling with the gun, he wouldn't have necessarily gotten his finger into the trigger and exerted 12 pounds of pressure. He wouldn't have been trying to get it away from her and not pointed on her face.

LEMON: What's next? Can we look for an appeal here? He's got a lot of money.

HUGHES: Oh, absolutely. He's absolutely going to appeal. They have 30 days to let the court know that they're going to file that appeal, then they'll have time to perfect it. They need to convince an appellate court that somehow somewhere along the line, the judge made an improper ruling and gave the jury the wrong law to rely on.

LEMON: All right. Holly Hughes, thank you very much. Holly, make sure you stick around here, you'll be back a little bit later on this hour. We're going to talk about the jury and the details in the Conrad Murray trial. Of course, the death of Michael Jackson. Coming up next week, I'm going to be in L.A., we're going to talk about the jury, the importance of jury selection in winning a case. Thank you very much, Holly Hughes. We'll see you in just a bit.

Meantime, NASA says, it knows a satellite crashed to earth, just not sure where it crashed. If you're watching this, at least you can be at least sure that the debris didn't hit you. Some iReporters enjoyed a light show that maybe, may have been the satellite, although CNN, you know, can't confirm this, but that's what they saw. All NASA knows for sure is that the decommissioned Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite fell to earth overnight around midnight Eastern Time. These 26 pieces expected to survive the descent range from about ten pounds to hundreds of pounds. That's a lot. NASA now plans for the controlled re-entry of satellites but it didn't win. This one was launched 20 years ago.

All right. Let's talk about this now. Meteorologist Bonnie Schneider, she's is in the CNN Severe Weather talking about satellite falling from earth. We've had space debris before. But this is different because of its size?

BONNIE SCHNEIDER, AMS METEOROLOGIST: That's right. Because of its size. And that's what the concern was. But you have to realize that satellites and space debris falls every single day every single week. But this is the midpoint, the prediction point in altitude of 10 kilometers where it's estimated to have fallen all they we may never know exactly where the falling point occurred because it really could have occurred anywhere. But naturally, the most likely place would be somewhere over water since the earth is covered by 70 percent of water. So, that's likely what happened over the North Pacific. So, the prediction point was at an altitude of 10 kilometers. But an altitude of 80 kilometers was when the break up begins. And that's why we're expecting this to be in much smaller pieces and scattered more about.

No reports of visuals that you can see confirmed of the re-entry. Twenty six pieces possibly reached the ground of various size. But as you mention Don on average, one satellite re-entries the area usually, so small it burns up before reaching the earth. In about once a week, a larger satellite re-enters, the prediction messages are then issued if something is larger and that's what we saw with this one. So, overall, it doesn't look like we had any confirmed reports or anyone being injured from it which I know was a concern for many of this past week. But luckily the chances of that were very, very slim.

Well, we do have some more updates to tell you about in weather that we're watching. We have a brand new tropical system and we're monitoring that. We've been talking a lot about Ophelia but tropical storm Philippe just formed moments ago. We just got this in. It's the way up the coast of Africa, Cape Verde Islands. So, it's pretty far away. This one like Ophelia is not expected to impact the U.S. as it is anticipated to turn farther to the north. But it's still hurricane season, so we're still monitoring all of the activity in the tropics -- Don.

LEMON: All right. Let's talk about that falling satellite that space junk again. Because some of our iReporters have really took pictures and they believe that's what it is. Again, we can't confirm this but those pictures are pretty amazing. As we said earlier, Bonnie, as a pretty spectacular light show. I guess it's possible that it could be part of this debris, right?

SCHNEIDER: It absolutely is possible for sure. And you can see the different particles and how small they appear from such a large satellite. And that's what happens when it does re-enter because we do have that burning that takes place and that breakup of the debris.

LEMON: Yes. Pretty cool to look at I do have to say. I mean, things fall to earth all the time, those junk and debris and meteorites.

SCHNEIDER: And chances are, it won't hit you because it will hit the ocean.

LEMON: There you go. Let's not make too much of this. Thank you very much, Bonnie Schneider. I appreciate it.

SCHNEIDER: Sure.

LEMON: All right. Finally, heading home after nightmare in Iran that lasted more than two years, Shane Bauer and Josh Fattal are on a plane at this hour on their way back to the U.S. They were two of the three American hikers were arrested after -- they apparently strayed over the border from Iraq to Iran in July, 2009. Iran accused them of being spies sentencing them to eight years in prison. But on Wednesday, Bauer and Fattal left Iran for Oman under a million dollar bail deal and they have been soaking up every moment of freedom ever since.

JOSH FATTAL, FREED AMERICAN HIKER: Just hours after we left prison, we were able to swim in the calm waters of the gulf. We stayed up all night with our loved ones and we watched the most beautiful sunset we have ever seen. These experiences will be with us for the rest of our lives.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: The third of those American hikers, Sarah Shourd was freed a year ago for medical reasons and on Friday, Shourd became officially engaged to fellow hiker Shane Bauer following his release. You can see him slipping the ring on her finger here in this picture. Shourd is on the plane with Bauer and Fattal as they make their way back to U.S. soil. Supposedly, he made that ring from a shirt he wore in prison, very nice.

Will Russia's old leader become its new leader? That's what current President Dmitry Medvedev wants to see happen. He's thrown his support behind Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to succeed him next year. Putin to lead Russia until 2008 when Medvedev replaced him. Putin and -- is backing Medvedev for his current job of prime minister. Putin was banned from running for a third consecutive term in 2008, instead, he helped his protege win election as president.

President Barack Obama about to make a big speech tonight. His audience will be full of supporters but they want to hear some concrete ideas to reduce unemployment.

And as a gay teenager, he fought to empower others like him to stand up to bullying but apparently it became too much for him. We'll have the story coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: These African-Americans are among President Obama's strongest supporters but as a group, they have also felt some of the worst effects of the struggling economy. In just a few hours, President Obama will speak at a dinner hosted by the Congressional Black Caucus.

Our Athena Jones is at the White House with the preview for us. Athena, listen, it's going to be a crowd of supporters but also very tough critics at the same time. So, what can we expect the president to say and what do CBC members want to hear from him?

ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, certainly the president has come under fire not just recently but really all along for what many in the black community not just members of Congress but others believe is a lack of a focus or enough focus on the problem of the black unemployment rate. As of August, unemployment in the black community was 16.7 percent. That's a lot higher than the national average of 9.1 percent. Nearly twice as much. So, there's been a lot of concern that the White House isn't doing enough. Now, the White House would say that the president spends a lot of time and has spent a lot of time talking with plaque leaders and black organizations about their concerns. And that this jobs bill that he's proposed, he introduced just this month will go a long way to addressing some of their concerns. We expect to hear him touch on some of those issues tonight. He has also taped an interview with BET Network that's airing on Monday but in it, he talks about the economy and also the particularly difficult time the black community has had. Let's listen to a little bit of what he have a clip about of that interview.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PRES. BARACK OBAMA (D), UNITED STATES: Right now, we are in a situation where the economy is stabilized but it stabilized too high an unemployment rate. And I think, if we get this jobs bill passed, that's going to make a difference right away. It's estimated that that would grow the economy by an extra two percent, put maybe 1.9 million people back to work. Those aren't our estimates. Those are independent estimates. So, that could make a difference.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JONES: And so tonight, we expect the president to talk about this jobs bill in the context of the African-American community. This is certainly the kind of thing that CBC members and their staffers have told me that they want to hear. Just a couple of weeks ago, President Obama spoke briefly with an interactive panel of black media and he talked specifically about some of the effects this job bill could have on the African-American community. He talked about 20 million African-Americans who could benefit from the proposal to cut the payroll tax in a half for instance. He talked about 1.4 million African-American families that would benefit from an extension of unemployment benefits. He also talked about plans to encourage hiring of low income workers, training for low-income workers.

LEMON: Athena, I have to ask you. What is the CBC though? How have they reacted to the president's job plan, the speech and the plan that he came out with afterwards. What's been their reaction?

JONES: Well, it's interesting because even though you've heard some of the well publicized criticism leading up to the speech from people like our Representative Maxine Waters who wanted to see a big plan from the president and questioned his tour of the Midwest saying, why are you going to Iowa when you could be going into the black community to talk about jobs. And so interestingly enough after the speech, Waters and others said that they liked what they heard. And some of the television interviews that Representative Waters gave, she said that the president has heard that CBC. And so, why some wanted to see a bit of a bigger plan, a bigger steps to help the African-American community. They believe that this is on the right track and what they really want to do, what they really want to see is the president fight for this plan, really fight and internalize the lessons from some of these past debates. Some people believe he gave up a little too soon on some of these past issues like Dodd-Frank and health care.

LEMON: We hear some folks in the background. Don't know if they are protesters. Anything to do with what you're reporting or just protesters?

JONES: Not as far as we know. Not as far as we know. There is often protesters out here.

LEMON: Yes. Athena, I appreciate it. We'll be looking forward to the president's speech and don't go anywhere. I want to tell our audience about 15 minutes, we're going to talk more about tonight's speech and we're going to talk with Sheila Jackson Lee, congresswoman from Texas and a member of the Congressional Black Caucus. We'll get reaction from her.

And happening right now, Florida Republicans voting on who they want President Obama to face in next year's election. The Florida straw poll results expected at any minute. We'll going to bring that to you live, next.

But first, more about money. Love and money as a matter of fact. What impact has this sluggish economy had on both and have the rules changed when it comes to dating? Christine Romans and Ali Velshi, they sat down with Patti Stanger, a third generation match maker and star of the Bravo Show base on her business. The "Millionaire Matchmaker." It's this week's smart is the new rich.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: If you are out there in the world, you got millions unemployed struggling to pay down debts. If you are out of a job, do you let your date know that? Do you let them know that you got $35,000...

ALI VELSHI, CNN ANCHOR: They'll going to find out at some point.

ROMANS: They need to know the 580 credit score?

PATTI STANGER, "THE MILLIONAIRE MATCHMAKER": OK, well, the problem is going to be that the women, OK, if you are down trotting a man wants to rescue you. So, that is attractive sometimes to the millionaire man. He likes the woman that doesn't challenge his opinion. Doesn't have a better job than him.

ROMANS: Sounds boring.

STANGER: I know. But that is biology. Now, if you are a man, if you said that to a woman, what would we do? We would run for the nearest exit.

VELSHI: Has that changed in this economy...

STANGER: No.

VELSHI: ...with more people unemployed, with more people with debt? How do you discuss that? And we talked about it all the time.

STANGER: You shouldn't be dating anyway because you can't take a girl out for dinner or cocktails, you shouldn't be dating.

VELSHI: Now, to what degree are you honest about your financial situation?

(CROSSTALK)

How much do you talk to somebody about your financial situation and your debt? I mean, you probably date one when you don't want to overshoot, because you may not be able to do date two that way.

STANGER: OK. Have you ever dated? When you dating successful guys, they would whine and complain they had no money and you would hear all the time and they would look at the bill at the end. Never, ever do that. You want to be able to be generous and you want to be able to like, you know, say, oh, you know, I'm into this hobby and maybe it's wine, maybe it's, I don't know becoming a helicopter pilot which is saying, I spend a lot of money but not leading with your money. When you lead with your money, you attract a gold digger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Dating advice for these economic hard times with Patti Stanger, the "Millionaire Matchmaker."

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Time now to talk politics. Republican presidential candidates are facing a hurdle in a key battleground state today I should say. In just about 20 minutes or so, we'll hear the results from the Presidency Five Straw Poll in Florida. The outcome could be crucial to candidates who are trailing in the polls.

CNN's political reporter Peter Hamby joins us now on the phone from the event. He's in Orlando. So, who is expected to come out on top? How close are we, do we know?

PETER HAMBY, CNN POLITICAL REPORTER: Well, this is -- we're about 20 minutes away right now from the results, Don. But this is really interesting. In most straw polls, you know, some of them aren't very important. They won't determine a nominee. But Rick Perry came into this thing, the republican front-runner, the Texas Governor expected to win but his off kilter and uneven debate performance on Thursday night really hurt him here if you talk to delegates at this convention, they are concerned about his support for a bill in Texas that gave in-state tuition to illegal immigrants. That really hurt him. So, now there are questions floating around that he might actually lose or come up short. I think he's still the favorite but if he loses to Romney or even lose to Herman Cain or Newt Gingrich, that would be a serious blow to Rick Perry as this momentum is kind of stalled right now -- Don.

LEMON: Yes, Peter, and so a closer -- do we know, I guess we don't know until the final elect the percentages and where they are. So, I guess, you know, who is going to come out on top, that was a more appropriate question. But listen, Florida Governor Rick Scott is going to make the announcement here. What will these results mean to the candidates who are struggling in this campaign? I guess if you're struggling and you come out on top, it gives you a boost. If you're not, then, what does that mean?

HAMBY: Yes, I mean, think about Rick Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator who has really been in and after this whole race. He's had several strong debate performances and something, an event like this, strong showing here could give him momentum. It's all about image and momentum because Santorum is really struggling to come up. He needs to do very well in a place like Iowa. That's where his candidacy has really hinged. And he's kind of emerged as an alternative to Perry on the right among conservatives. Though he shows well here today, that's a great story line for him to take back to Iowa when he goes there tomorrow and say, hey, guess what? I'm more conservative than Rick Perry. I'm more conservative than Michele Bachmann. You need to give me a second look here because, you know, there's two or three months to go. So, there's still time for some lesser known candidates to get attraction -- Don. LEMON: Good analysis. Peter Hamby again, former Governor Rick Scott expected to announce in about 15, 20 minutes whenever they come in, it comes it before, we'll bring it to you. Little bit after, we'll have it for you as well.

In the meantime, the jury is set in the trial of Michael Jackson's doctor. Will the makeup of that group play in the favor of a prosecution or the defense? You're going to want to know this question. You're going to want to hear this. Former prosecutor and our criminal defense attorney Holly Hughes rejoins us to talk about it all, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Michael Jackson's former physician Dr. Conrad Murray goes on trial next week for involuntary manslaughter in the pop star's death.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JUDGE KEITH SCHWARTZ, LOS ANGELES SUPERIOR COURT: You may not under any circumstances use any anesthetic agents such specifically Protofol. You're not to be using that. You're not to prescribe that. You're not to have it in any manner whatsoever. Do you understand that? I'm letting any issues here where you would sedate people. I don't want you sedating people.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So, that was Murray in court last year charged in Jackson's death. The pop superstar died in 2009 from a combination of anesthesia and other drugs. He was under Murray's care at the time. The trial will determine if Murray was criminally responsible in the death. So, let's bring in again, criminal Defense Attorney Holly Hughes. So, Holly, if you're representing Dr. Conrad Murray, what's your defense?

HOLLY HUGHES, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY & FORMER PROSECUTOR: Basically that Michael did this to himself. You administer the proper amount. When you left the room for a brief minute to make a phone call, this person who admitted himself in an interview in 2003 that he was a drug addict helped himself to these drugs and you had no idea that he was going to do this. You did not administer an improper amount.

LEMON: So, here's the thing. He's already said, he's done to a lay person, a lay person would say, he's already admitted it. The judge and other people you've heard, key people, smart people say if you're going to do this which you are not supposed to in that setting, you have to watch someone. So, he admits he didn't do it. He admits he walked away and took a phone call.

HUGHES: He did admit to that. But what we're talking about is, does that fall so far below the standard of care that he can be held criminally responsible. Because that's what this charge is about. This is not a second-degree murder charge. This is sort of in civil terms, you were just so negligent, that as a result of your negligence, somebody died. And that's why we see the criminal charge being levied here but not a top count, not a murder charge.

LEMON: All right. Put on the hat of a prosecutor. Then, what do you do? How do you get a conviction?

HUGHES: You get a conviction by simply saying that this judge fall way below the standard of care because you knew your patient was an addict. You knew your patient had a problem. Why in heaven's name, would you ever walk out of a room that has drugs in it that he can access? So, you just go the other way and you say that in itself is absolutely negligent and should not have been done.

LEMON: OK. This is what I want to talk about. Because we've got a profile of the jury last night. It came to us.

HUGHES: Yes.

LEMON: All right. So, I want to talk about the jury in this case. And it goes on, 52-year-old white female divorced is an accounting manager. Fifty one-year-old Mexican male is a mail carrier. It goes on. Another person has a master's degree. Another person is a bookseller, cashier, professional people. Another person is a paralegal. Only one African-American. This is a very interesting jury selection, I think.

HUGHES: This is, I think, a great jury for the state. I'll tell you why. They are an older bunch. They are a very educated bunch. And they also -- if you read into their profiles, several of them have had family members with substance abuse problems either drugs or alcohol. This is a jury that's going to get it. This is a jury will say, if you were trying to help my son or daughter, I wouldn't want you leaving them in a room with all of those drugs laying around. So if you administer too much yourself, you're guilty. If you left them with access to it, you're guilty also.

LEMON: Here's the thing. Fredricka and I were talking about it. Unlike the Casey Anthony trial -- I don't know. I'm not an expert when it comes to this. But this jury seems to be able to -- at least has done it before, professionals, and can understand the instructions.

HUGHES: Absolutely. That's key. A lot of these jurors have sat on juries before. One woman has been on five different juries.

LEMON: Yes.

HUGHES: So she gets the idea of listening to what the law is, not going on emotion, not getting confused but listening to instructions of the judge and being able to properly interpret them, get the legal concepts and come to the right conclusion.

LEMON: What's at stake for Murray? What if he's found guilty?

HUGHES: If he's found guilty, he's facing up, I think it's up to four years. Don't quote me exactly, but it's nowhere near what it would have been if he looks at a second-degree murder charge, which takes him into 14 and above range. I think he'll get right around four years as the max.

LEMON: Yes.

HUGHES: Even if he's convicted, Don, we have to believe that there's going to be evidence trying to mitigate that sentence. The defense will say, you know what, this guy has a sterling reputation. We've seen all his other patients taking up the banner for him. He may not get maxed out at that four. He may get less if he gets convicted.

LEMON: Here's what I think, innocent until proven guilty. But if he is found not guilty, that's when the story really begins --

(LAUGHTER)

-- as in the same with Casey Anthony.

HUGHES: Oh, well, yes. I think the flashback would be awful. Because his fans are quite devoted. Let's say that.

LEMON: Thank you very much, Holly Hughes. Appreciate it.

HUGHES: Thanks.

LEMON: President Barack Obama about to make a big speech tonight. His audience will be full of supporters but they want to hear some concrete ideas on reducing unemployment. We'll talk with Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee. She's going to be in the audience.

There she is. Looking lovely in lavender and purple right there.

That's right after a break. Don't go anywhere.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Let's talk more politics. A little bit earlier, we previewed Obama's speech for tonight before the Congressional Black Caucus. So let's talk about it now with a member of the caucus, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, of Texas. She joins me now from Washington.

Congresswoman, thank you so much for joining us.

Listen, we know how you feel. I've been hearing you and seeing you on television saying this administration needs to do more and do more about employment, especially when it comes to African-Americans. What do you want to hear from President Obama tonight?

REP. SHEILA JACKSON LEE, (D), TEXAS: Thousands will be in this ballroom and I expect the president to be firm, passionate, compassionate and determined when he speaks to an organization that is celebrating 40 years of being the conscience of the Congress. Whenever there's been a problem, whenever there's been a crisis, the Congressional Black Caucus has been in the midst, from Katrina to the lack of jobs to the criminal justice system. So he knows he's talking to the people who have rolled up their sleeves, who have toiled and really felt the brunt of some of America's injustices. But he also knows that he will be talking to Americans, patriots. This audience is one of the greatest patriotic audiences you can ever speak to because they care about insisting that all of America has an opportunity to be the best that they can be. So I expect the president to talk about jobs but also to talk about his fight to ensure we create these jobs and that we insist that the private sector partnerships to go into those very difficult areas where African- Americans are unemployed and young people are unemployed, where children are impoverished, and do something about it.

(CROSSTALK)

JACKSON LEE: It can't be just the government. He has to be the government and the private sector.

LEMON: We've heard you. And we've heard Emanuel Cleaver. We've heard Maxine Waters say this administration needs to do something, needs to do more. Do you find it ironic, in a sense, that we're talking about an African-American president, and the criticism has been that he's not done enough for African-Americans? 16.7 percent at last count for African-Americans. 17 percent for African-American men. Do you think he gets it?

JACKSON LEE: I'll tell you what, let me just say that the Congressional Black Caucus admires, loves this president and is ready for his reelection. We call our efforts constructive conscious criticism, critiquing so that we can all do better. And frankly, we know the president's heart. This job bills speaks to a lot of our pain.

(CROSSTALK)

JACKSON LEE: -- as it relates to small businesses.

LEMON: Just quickly, with all due respect, if you can answer my question, do you think he gets it?

JACKSON LEE: I do think he gets it. I think it's hard. I think that he's got to be able to balance this whole idea of being the president of the United States of America, knowing there are painful communities -- Appalachia is hurting. And so we are long with a lot of hurting groups. The president needs to say to the American public, if I lift the boat of those hurting the most, your boat is going to rise. If I allow the poorest to consume and get a job, your boat is going to rise.

LEMON: OK.

JACKSON LEE: I think the president is ready for that. But that's OK. The Congressional Black Caucus is ready for it. We'll demand of this Republican Congress to find their moral compass. What are they going to do? The president put out a plan. The Congress -- the Congressional Black Caucus has shown them, the thousands that were in the streets in the month of August, I saw them as they stood in the hot sun to get a job. How much more does it take for the Republicans to get it? LEMON: OK.

JACKSON LEE: But the president has to be able to say I'm a peace maker but I'm a fighter and I'm going to fight for the American people, just like our soldiers are on the front line fighting for us?

LEMON: Congresswoman, I want to ask you this. I do want to talk to you about technology jobs. So let's get these points here. Listen, I think that what many people want to ask is, do you think the president is being strong enough, despite you talking about a Republican Congress and all that. Is he being firm enough? Has he been firm enough when it comes to not only his position on jobs but other things in order to get something going? Because it appears right now it's at a stalemate. The Republicans don't want to work with them. So what are you going to do? What's he going to do?

JACKSON LEE: Well, you have to understand the president wanted to be presidential and extend a hand of cooperation. I think his -- remember now, he has counsel. He has staff. I think they get it. We have been saying it over and over again that we're not in for a blood bath but we're in for success. We're in for letting the American people know that we're fighting for them.

Again, I'm calling on the Republican's patriotism. The president has to call on America's patriotism. So, you know what, a patriot fight.

LEMON: OK.

JACKSON LEE: And we want the president to fight. We think he gets it. We'll look for him to fight. And we'll fight alongside of him.

LEMON: I would love for you to come back after this -- after this speech if you have time, and I would like to get your assessment, if you think he did -- if he spoke to you or if he didn't.

JACKSON LEE: I would be -- I would be delighted.

LEMON: OK. I want to get --

JACKSON LEE: A lot of good things are gong to happen, and technology is one of them.

LEMON: That's what I want to talk to you about. I hate to five short shrift to that, but we're running out of time. You believe that technology sector is the place where we could find more jobs, especially for African-Americans. Tell me why.

JACKSON LEE: A great opportunity. One, because you can do it -- one person can have a startup company and have an opportunity to work. Two, Silicon Valley has been the nucleus. We now have to seed it across America. The president is leading an effort that I'm joining with him, start-up partnership dealing with spreading technology. They've done it in 19 states. We need to do it in more. We need to education the African-American community, the impoverished of the opportunities for all levels of education to participate and start up companies and create jobs. LEMON: Congresswoman, thank you very much. You look very lovely. Appreciate you coming on CNN.

JACKSON LEE: Delighted to be with you. And I hope you'll enjoy the session. I hope you'll peep in on us.

LEMON: Thank you very much.

Coming up after a quick break, a gay teenager, who fought to empower others like him to stand up to bullying, but it apparently became too much for him.

But first, this year is the fifth anniversary of "CNN Heroes." And over the years, we've received more than 40,000 nominations from you, our viewers, in more than 100 countries. This week we reveal the top- 10 "CNN Heroes of 2011." Each will receive $50,000 and a shot at "CNN Hero of the Year," which will earn one of them an additional $250,000. And you get to decide who that person will be.

Here's CNN's Anderson Cooper with the top-10 "CNN Heroes of 2011."

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: I'm Anderson Cooper. All year we've been introducing you to every-day people changing the word. We call them "CNN Heroes." Now we announce the top-10 "CNN Heroes for 2011."

The honorees are, in alphabetical order by first name, Amy Stokes, she uses the Internet to match teens lacking role models with adults around the world. Bruno Serato is serving up a solution so motels kids don't go to bed hungry. Derreck Kayongo collects discarded hotel soaps and reprocesses them to save lives. Diane Latiker in a violent neighborhood, she opened her door, inviting gang members in. Eddie Canales helps young football players sidelined by spinal cord injuries. Elena Duron Miranda) offers poor children a way out of the trash dump and into school. Patrice Millet, diagnosed with terminal cancer, started feeding and coaching children from Haiti's slums. Robin Lim helps poor women have healthy pregnancies and safe deliveries. Sal Dimiceli pays for rent, food and basic necessities to keep the working poor afloat. And Taryn Davis, who built a sisterhood of healing for a new general for American war widows.

Congratulations to the top-10 "CNN Heroes of 2011."

Which one inspires you the most? Go to CNNheroes.com online or on your mobile device, vote for "CNN Hero of the Year.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right, Anderson. Thank you very much.

And go to CNNheroes.com. Vote for most inspirational hero online and on your mobile device. All 10 honored live at "CNN Heroes, an All- Star Tribute" hosted by our very own Anderson Cooper on Sunday, December 11th. But only one will be named "CNN Hero of the Year." (COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: All right, live to Orlando. You see Florida Governor Rick Scott announcing the straw poll winners in the Florida Straw Poll. Let's listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RICK SCOTT, (R), GOVERNOR OF FLORIDA: 1.5 percent of the votes cast, Michele Bachmann.

(APPLAUSE)

SCOTT: With 60 votes, 2.3 percent of the votes cast, Jon Huntsman.

(APPLAUSE)

SCOTT: With 224 votes, or 8.4 percent, Newt Gingrich.

(APPLAUSE)

SCOTT: With 276 votes, 10.4 percent, Ron Paul.

(APPLAUSE)

SCOTT: 289 votes, 10.9 percent, Rick Santorum.

(APPLAUSE)

SCOTT: OK. We're down to three. 372 votes, 14 percent, Mitt Romney.

(APPLAUSE)

SCOTT: Tonight's winner, with 986 votes, 37.1 percent, Herman Cain!

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: OK. So there you go. We came in on a bit of it. But it appears Herman Cain is the winner of the Florida Straw Poll. Herman Cain the winner. Mitt Romney, second. Rick Santorum, third. Ron Paul after that, Newt Gingrich, Jon Huntsman, Michele Bachmann. Again, that is Florida Governor Rick Scott making the announcement. And we'll get the exact percentages for you again. But, again, our political team, the best political team on television, standing by. But, again, Herman Cain, Herman Cain is the winner of the Florida Straw Poll.

We're back in a moment. We'll analyze this and give you more news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Gay teens being bullied. It's not a new story but it's claimed another life. Jamie Rodermeyer wanted nothing more than to give other gay teens the strength to overcome being bullied. But the torment he suffered was apparently too much, so much that he took his own life this week.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JAMIE RODERMEYER, GAY TEEN WHO COMMITTED SUICIDE: Hi, this is Jamie from Bethlehem, New York. I'm just here to tell you that it does get better.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON (voice-over): In May, Jamie Rodermeyer uploads this video to YouTube as part of the "It Gets Better Project," a worldwide movement to support teen gays and lesbians. He speaks candidly of being taunted for his sexuality in school and online.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

RODERMEYER: I thought I could never escape it. And people would just constantly send me hate, telling me that gay people go to hell.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: Drawing support from his friends and inspiration from pop star, Lady Gaga, things did eventually get better for the Buffalo teen. But recently, his parents and friends say the torment hit him harder. Last Sunday, he was found dead after an apparent suicide. He left no note but, that same day, he wrote on his blog that he wanted to see two people who had recently died, his great grandma and his friend, Alex.

Jamie's father, Tim Rodermeyer, says his son hid his emotions.

TIM RODERMEYER, JAMIE'S FATHER: He fooled everybody. He put on a brave face. But I wish he wouldn't have.

LEMON: His death is not the first time a gay teen has killed himself after being bullied. A year ago, Rutgers University freshman, Tyler Clemente, jumped to his death after his roommate secretly broadcast a video online of Clemente having a sexual encounter with another man, bringing worldwide attention to the issue.

In 2008, the Suicide Prevention Center reported that search shows lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths could be as much as seven times more likely to attempt suicide than their straight peers.

His parents say the school told them they were able to stop, at times, incidents of bullying against their son. But one educator says it's not easy.

UNIDENTIFIED WILLIAMSVILLE SCHOOL SUPERINTENDENT: It's incredibly difficult. I think if there was an easy solution, a school district or a school community would have found it by now.

LEMON: Rodermeyer's family and neighbors say they will continue to speak out so the world can learn from his death.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) RODERMEYER: All you have to hold your head up and you'll go far, because that's all you have to do, just love yourself and you're set.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(END VIDEOTAPE)

LEMON: I have to tell you, police are investigating whether school bullies could be charged with harassment or hate crimes related to Jamie's suicide.

Meantime, his idol, Lady Gaga, has written on her Twitter account that she wants to name an anti-bullying law after him. We're going to talk more about this story in our 7:00 eastern hour here on KCNN.

Make sure you join us on October 9th when Anderson Cooper will hold a special "AC 360" town hall to explore ways to stop bullying. That's October 9th at 8:00 p.m. eastern.

I talked about the tragic outcome of bullying in my book "Transparent," which is dedicated to Rutgers University student, Tyler Clemente, who took his own life because of cyber bullying. And I just want to thank the Anti-Violence Project in New York for this Courage Award they awarded me just two nights ago. I got one, along with Time Warner, for our efforts in anti-bullying and anti-violence. Thank you very much for that.

In the meantime, a virus costs a woman both of her hands and both of her feet. Most people might give up if that happened to them. But her story has a remarkable ending. And our Dr. Sanjay Gupta introduces us to her right after the break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(HUMAN FACTOR)

LEMON: She works one day a week in addition to her physical therapy and hopes to be able to display her art work at a local gallery.

I'm Don Lemon at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta. I'll see you back here one hour from now. Thank you so much for joining us. In the meantime, "THE SITUATION ROOM" with Wolf Blitzer begins very shortly.