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Taking It To The Street ; GOP Seeks Investigation Of Attorney General; Deadly Workplace Shooting; Today's Rock Stars; Dawn Of A Liberal Tea Party?; The Hunt For Sharks; Hunting Sharks Banned; David Cassidy Sues Sony

Aired October 05, 2011 - 13:00   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: Hi, Suzanne. Hello, everyone, glad you're with us today.

Their voices are getting louder, their numbers are multiplying, and their message is spreading. It is week three of the Occupy Wall Street protest and the group is gaining momentum. Demonstrations started on September 17th in New York City. Now, new offshoots are popping up in cities across the country including Boston, Chicago, Denver and Seattle. Their signs and slogans make it clear they oppose everything from bank foreclosures and job shortages to corporate influence and greed.

Now, several labor unions are endorsing the Occupy Wall Street movement and plan to join protesters today. Susan Candiotti joins me now live from Wall Street with much more. Susan, what's the latest on the unions getting involved? Have you actually seen any union members there?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, some of them are showing up here, Randi, at this public park. This park population here has been steadily growing as the morning goes on. And they expect upwards of -- well, they're saying tens of thousands of people. Of course, they have made many predictions in the past about how quickly and how many people will show up at various marches. This one, they insist, will be different. They have a permit to march from here over to a park near city hall. They plan to gather there and then come right back here to Wall Street to this public park.

And they chose this spot for a reason. You know, they could've gone down to Time Square and might have attracted more attention, but they wanted to be where they believe they are at the closest that they can be to where Wall Street is located and that is this public park. And it's very interesting to see how much it has grown in organization, at least in how this park is run in the last three weeks since we've been coming here. They now have working groups that specialize in different areas.

One, publicity; another one, feeding people; getting donations; another group that takes care of handing out free blankets and tarps to people. And they're starting to get donations more than $30,000 has come in so far. But they tell us they're not after collecting money, they really want people to give manpower and to give things to help keep this movement growing -- Randi.

KAYE: Yes. And Susan, what is the ultimate goal as far as you can tell of this group?

CANDIOTTI: It's hard to say But I think the best way to sum it up is they want people to listen. Which people? The people in Washington, the people who they hope can help make a difference. Also, Wall Street -- you know, they say we represent 99 percent of the people in this country, and Wall Street represents one percent of the people who control the money. So, they simply are saying, and you've heard the phrase before more or less, we're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore. The question is, how do they expect change to happen? They're not sure at this change and they're not bothered by that, because they believe they have time on their side to try to effect change.

KAYE: All right. Susan, thank you very much. Reporting there live from Wall Street, the gathering of the Occupy Wall Street protest. Thank you so much.

Other stories developing this hour. House judiciary chairman, Lamar Smith, is calling for an independent investigation of attorney general Eric Holder. The top House Republican wants to know if Holder told the truth when he testified in may about the federal gun running operation. Documents leaked to CNN, and other news organizations show holder knew about Operation Fast and Furious earlier than he claimed. The operation involving agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives funneled guns into Mexico in an effort to trace the weapons to drug cartels. Many of the guns were never tracked and ended up being used in drug crimes.

We're getting word this hour of a deadly workplace shooting here in California. Police say a disgruntled employee walked into a quarry in Cupertino, California and opened fire. Eight people were shot, officials say two of them may be dead. The same suspect is also believed to have shot a woman during an attempted carjacking in Cupertino. The suspect is identified as Shareef Alman, approximately 45 years old. Authorities believe he fled on foot and may still be in the area. We'll continue to follow this story, and, of course, bring you updates as we get them.

Occupy Wall Street protesters may not have one specific leader, but they are shopping around for a political voice. Unions are supporting them as you just heard, will Washington?

But first, our "Daily Shout Out" takes us to Urbandale, Iowa. A four-year-old boy found his mom unconscious, so he called 911 using her cell phone. He didn't know his address because his family had just moved into the neighborhood. So, the wise dispatcher kept him on the line chatting for 14 minutes to trace his call. Here's what he did when help got there.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm over here! I'm over here! My mommy is in trouble. My mommy has passed out. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, did you call 911?

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. Let me talk to him.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK, let me talk, too.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I'm four.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: Amazing courage. No word on what mom's condition was but we do know that the doctors say she would have died if not for her quick thinking 4-year-old. So, today's rock star is the four-year-old boy in Iowa and the dispatcher that could.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: The scene from Wall Street as the numbers multiply and the message getting louder, it seems the occupy Wall Street protesters have the potential to grow into a political party, sort of a left wing Tea Party. Take a look at this map. Offshoots of the group have now spread from New York, to Chicago, Denver, Albuquerque and Los Angeles and even more cities are getting in line to hit the streets in protest. The question now is, will this movement take hold in Washington? And will it take hold with voters? Joining me now from Wall Street is Bill Dobbs, he is a volunteer with the Occupy Wall Street group.

Thank you so much, Bill, for coming on the show. First, you've been there since the beginning. I mean, is one of the goals, I have to ask you, of the group to form a viable political party?

BILL DOBBS, VOLUNTEER, "OCCUPY WALL STREET": No. This is -- thank you, Randi, by the way for having us. This is a very loud outcry about economic conditions and many other issues in this country. This is about the other 99 percent. One percent of the country is very wealthy and powerful, and there are a lot of people hurting right now. And what we're doing down here is using all our energy to give out a loud outcry and bring other people into this battle. And that's one of the great things about the rally later this afternoon which is going to have a lot of representation from organized labor, and we're very excited about that.

KAYE: There are so many issues here at play. I mean, there's the issue of unemployment, corporate greed, the environment, the wealth disparity. In terms of what this group wants at the end of the day, I mean, what do you think you can actually gain?

DOBBS: To try and get more people involved is a huge effort because many of us are cynical, feeling despair, and angry. And this protest has tapped into that anger not only are people here because they lost jobs, they've got really big student loan payments, plus they also find when they come down to Occupy Wall Street and other protests that are beginning around the country, they find some community and they find some joy, and some hope that there's going to be a difference if more of us roll up our sleeves. KAYE: Some people are looking at your group and what they see is sort of a version of a liberal Tea Party. Is that how you see yourself?

DOBBS: A lot of different viewpoints are represented in this crowd and our supporters around the country. The idea that next generation might do as well as some of us now is a smashed dream. So, the outcry down here -- right now there isn't a central, major demand or slogan, but what it enables others to do is to bring their own issues and if you look at the signs, and look at the coverage about this, clearly the focus is on economics and economic justice for the other 99 percent.

KAYE: I did check out that We Are the 99 Percent blog, and it really is quite moving, some of the stories, so I recommend it to our viewers as well. Bill Dobbs, a volunteer for Occupy Wall Street. Bill, thank you very much.

And you can share your thoughts on the Occupy Wall Street movement by going to CNN.com/OpenStory. There, you can let your opinion be heard and you can also read some comments from others.

The movie "Jaws" stirred up shark paranoia, but the truth is humans are more of a threat to sharks than sharks are to people. Philippe Cousteau joins us live next, but first, here are the stories you're watching on CNN.com today.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: There is some major news about sharks that we want to tell you about. But first, let's be honest, when we think of sharks, many of us at one time or another have had nightmares over this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ROY SCHEIDER, ACTOR, "JAWS": Come on down and chum (ph) some of this. We're going to need a bigger boat.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Oh, yes, that scene scared the heck out of me. But, yes, it is just a movie, but an iconic one. A very scary, iconic one. But contrast that with this. This is the reality. According to OCEANA, we kill up to 73 million sharks each year. Often for their fins. We are the bigger threat. We are the greater danger to sharks.

But there's a growing push to stop shark hunting and the sale of shark fins, which is today's "Under Covered" story. The area around the Marshall Islands is now the world's largest shark sanctuary. The government unanimously passed legislation last week that ends commercial fishing of sharks. That effectively puts a stop to shark hunting around more than 768,000 square miles of the Pacific Ocean. We're talking an area four times the size of California. Very few know the ocean better than Philippe Cousteau, and he joins us live to dive in deeper into this.

Philippe, give us a better understanding, if you can, of just how big a deal this sanctuary is ecologically.

PHILIPPE COUSTEAU, EXPLORER, ENVIRONMENTAL ADVOCATE: Well, this is a tremendous win for shark conservation around the world. It's been a project that has been in the work for a long time with the help from the United States and organizations like the Pew Environment Group, helping the Marshall Islands to design an effective strategy for protecting sharks. As you pointed out, it increases essentially shark protected habitat around the world in an area that's four times the size of California. Eight times the size of the United Kingdom.

And it is really just a huge win because, as you pointed out, sharks are declining around the world. Seventy-three million killed every year. That's a rough estimate. And many shark species are threatened and on their way to extinction.

KAYE: Yes. And when you look at this, I mean it really is a growing movement. I mean just last month Mexico announced that it would ban not only shark, but also sting ray fishing next year. In the U.S., several states have already banned the sale of shark fins. California is considering doing the same. I mean what is the impact, Philippe, if sharks aren't protected in some way?

COUSTEAU: Well, thanks to "Jaws" and iconic films like that, a lot of people really think that the only good shark is a dead shark. And that is absolutely not true. On top of their intrinsic value and their beauty and gracefulness, sharks play a very, very important role in the environment. And in a world with increasing population and declining natural resources, food security is an increasing concern. Of course, fisheries security. Fisheries provide, you know, trillions of dollars to the global economy. And without healthy shark populations on coral reeves and in ecosystems, they provide the same role as say wolves do in Yellowstone, for example, helping to keep the populations of the other animals in that ecosystem in check and the ecosystem as a whole healthy.

So having sharks healthy in a space and on the coral reef in an ecosystem is critical to maintaining a healthy environment. And as I said, with dwindling natural resources, we absolutely cannot afford -- it's putting dinner on people's plates and money in their pockets to continue to kill sharks the way we've been doing.

KAYE: And how gruesome, really, is it? I mean spare us maybe the gory details, but how gruesome is it? How painful is it for the sharks themselves when they're killed for their fins?

COUSTEAU: Well, it is just a terrible practice. I've been filming it in Africa myself. And basically what the fishermen do is they catch the sharks on fishing lines or in nets. They pull them into the boat. They take a very sharp knife and slice the fins off while the shark is still alive, bleeding and shaking in the boat. And then they throw the shark back in the water, oftentimes still alive. And without its fins, it can't swim, so it sinks to the bottom and drowns.

KAYE: I do want to shift our focus, before we let you go, just on a brighter note. I know that you've been paying a lot of attention to another threatened species, which would be the sea turtles. You have a big special coming up from your extensive reporting on this, coming up this weekend. Can you tell us a little bit about what we can find. What did you find?

COUSTEAU: Well, unfortunately, like sharks, sea turtles are also declining around the world. There are the seven species of sea turtles. Six are either threatened or endangered. And, again, like sharks, sea turtles are suffering because of us largely because of overfishing, because of pollution. And also, like sharks, deserve every effort that we can make to protect them because they're an indicator species of the health of the oceans.

If sea turtle populations decline, it's because the health -- the oceans are unhealthy. And we, as a species on this planet, rely on healthy oceans for food, for income, for commerce. And without healthy oceans, which we like to call the life support system of this planet, we cannot survive long-term on this planet. And so sea turtles share a common fate with us that's what we were exploring in our documentary.

KAYE: Yes. And I know that you'll continue to do a lot of great work with the new foundation that you're launching, which is why you're in Austin, joining us from Austin today, Global Echo. How excited are you about that?

COUSTEAU: Global Echo. We're very excited. It's basically a partnership with an organization. We're going to be launching an exchange traded fund. A type of mutual fund on the New York Stock Exchange in a couple of months. And a percentage of the management fee will go into a brand new foundation that gives money to be a grant making organization to help solve some of the world's biggest problems. We're basically leveraging Wall Street to do good. So we're very, very excited about this. There's nothing quite like it that exists and it should be coming soon in a couple months. So it's very exciting.

KAYE: All right. We'll keep our eyes open for it. Philippe Cousteau, always great to have you on the show. Thank you so much.

COUSTEAU: Great to see you, Randi. Thanks.

KAYE: Thank you.

Coming up, former teen idol and star of "The Partridge Family," David Cassidy says the company behind him -- behind his show, actually, robbed him. He joins me live to explain what he's doing about it, next.

But first, it was on this day in 1986 when American Eugene Hasenfus parachuted to safety after his CIA supply plane was shot down in Nicaragua. Hasenfus was shipping military supplies to the Nicaraguan contras, an anti-government group funded by the U.S. His capture exposed what would become known as the Iran-Contra affair. And that is this shame in history.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: He was the teen idol of the 1970s. "Partridge Family" star David Cassidy, he's famous around the world for playing Keith Partridge in that '70s show. But today, nearly 40 years after "The Partridge Family" went off the air, Cassidy is suing the company that owns the show, Sony.

Why? Well, Cassidy says he wasn't paid for all the merchandise sold with his image on it. And what he did get, he says, was an insult. Mr. Cassidy just filed the suit today. He joins me from New York in a CNN exclusive.

But, first, some background on the case from CNN Money's Poppy Harlow.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM (voice-over): It's 1970 and a 20-year- old named David Cassidy is starring in "The Partridge Family." Not only did the show and sold out concerts go on to make him a star, but the teen idol's success spawns an avalanche of merchandise. And now he's on a personal mission, to get paid for that merchandise from Sony, which owns the show.

HARLOW (on camera): You say you've been robbed for the last few decades?

DAVID CASSIDY, ACTOR: How would you call it? If somebody does not pay you and you are entitled to a percentage of the profits, and you know they're making profits, is that stealing?

HARLOW (voice-over): Cassidy says, according to his contract, while the program was on the air, he was entitled to 15 percent of net merchandising profits when his image was used. Half that if he appeared with other cast members. Cassidy's lawyer sent this letter to Sony requesting "a prompt and full accounting" and "payment of proceeds for any merchandise" sold using his "name, likeness, voice," or other "exercise of such merchandizing rights."

Sony responded that it could not locate any merchandizing statements, but found letters "showing that Mr. Cassidy's representatives audited such statements. Therefore, they must have been rendered to him."

The company went on to say it was not aware of "any new merchandizing licenses utilizing said name, voice and likeness" after "The Partridge Family" went off the air and said the "statutes of limitations" had run out on any claims. Sony had no other comment to CNN.

CASSIDY: Just be fair. Be real. Be genuine. Don't be greedy.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: And David Cassidy joins me now.

David, thanks for coming on the show.

Now, in full disclosure, I have to admit, I did have a "Partridge Family" lunchbox. So I have to just put that out there. But you say that you only received --

CASSIDY: You and millions of others. Thank you.

KAYE: I know, which is what this whole thing is all about.

CASSIDY: Yes, it is.

KAYE: You say that you only received about $5,000 for all that merchandizing. How much do you think that Sony owes you?

CASSIDY: Well, we will not be able to determine that, I guess, until we open -- they open their books. And they have not been willing to do so.

In many ways, I think it's very sad that today that I -- it had to come to this. It's certainly not something I ever wanted to do. I should be able to be an ally. We should be business allies. Like it or not, I have a contract. We are business partners. We have DVDs of all of the seasons that the show was filmed. We have CDs. I have offered to be a partner with them. I'm out performing all over the United States singing "Partridge Family" songs, including tomorrow night I'm at the Count Basie Theatre. And it just goes on and on and on.

I have been grossly unaccounted to and grossly underpaid for many, many decades in which I never received a statement and the statements I recently learned, by doing an audit, which is extremely expensive, very time consuming, I discovered that there were many, many hundreds of thousands of dollars just in a three-year period of time that was owed to me.

KAYE: Yes.

CASSIDY: And it's very, very sad.

Listen, I would welcome them to come forward and make an effort to be, you know, not an adversarial relationship. But I'm still out there promoting what that asset is.

KAYE: Right. I want to mention that -- I want to point out that CNN -- we certainly have contacted Sony numerous times regarding the suit.

CASSIDY: I know.

KAYE: But per company policy, they're not commenting. But I guess for anyone who might be watching, you know, this -- your show was such a hit, you know, many years ago, why wait until now to bring up the merchandizing issue?

CASSIDY: It wasn't until I found the contract and I was able to, at that point, deliver the contract and say, you need to account to me. And then I was able to go in and audit it. And I was entitled to a very large percentage of the profits and proceeds of the show itself.

It was unprecedented what I did. I renegotiated a contract after one year. And at that time, to my knowledge, not any other actor, recording artist had ever renegotiated. And this was 1971. And at that time they owned my name and likeness. They have been marketing -- were using my name and my likeness and my voice, numerous items in the last decade that are out there. They claim they haven't.

I'm -- listen, I want to be fair, the last thing I -- anybody wants to do is to go into litigation. It's extraordinarily painful. It's very expensive.

KAYE: Right.

CASSIDY: And, quite frankly, I love "The Partridge Family." This is something that I have championed and I'm holding the torch. As I said, I'm on tour right now.

KAYE: Well, we will continue to watch the lawsuit, see how it progresses, David. And be sure to keep us up to date.

CASSIDY: Thank you. And thank you for buying that lunch box. I appreciate that.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: I wish I still had it. I could dig it up.

CASSIDY: I wish you did, too.

KAYE: All right, David Cassidy, thank you so much for your time. Appreciate it.

CASSIDY: Thank you very much.

KAYE: One term for Barack Obama, that is the goal for the Republican presidential candidates. So why is the president calling himself the underdog?

Plus, the real underdog, Herman Cain, is now a top dog among the GOP. What this all means for 2012. It is all "Fair Game," and it's coming your way next.

But, first, for you political junkies, you may remember that George H.W. Bush and Jimmy Carter were one-term presidents. But, before them, who was the last elected incumbent president to lose his reelection bid? Stay tuned for the answer.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Before the break we asked you about incumbents and lost elections. Besides Jimmy Carter and George H.W. Bush, who was the last elected incumbent president to lose? The answer is Herbert Hoover. How many of you got it right? He got trounced by Franklin Roosevelt. It might have been had something to do with that whole Depression thing that happened on Hoover's watch.

Time now to go beyond partisan talking points to the heart of the political debate where all sides are "Fair Game." The rallying cry for Republicans is make Obama a one-term president. And with the economy in the state it's in, Obama campaign chief David Axelrod said the president has a titanic struggle ahead of him when it comes to reelection. What does the president say? Well, check this out from an interview with ABC News.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GEORGE STEPHANOPOULOS, ABC NEWS: We have a brand-new poll out at ABC. It's just coming out later today, showing that a majority of Americans, 55 percent, think you'll be a one-term president. Are you the underdog now?

BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: Absolutely. The -- because, you know, given the economy, there's no doubt that, you know, whatever happens on your watch, you've got...

STEPHANOPOULOS: You embraced that pretty quickly.

OBAMA: You know, I don't mind. I'm used to being an underdog. And -- and I think that, at the end of the day, though, what people are going to say is, who's got a vision for the future that can actually help ordinary families recapture that American dream?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: He seems ready to embrace the underdog label. After all America loves underdogs.

So let me bring in my guests today. CNN political analyst Roland Martin joins me from Atlanta. And Georgetown associate dean Christopher Metzler is in Washington.

Thank you both for coming on.

Roland, I you want to start with you.

ROLAND MARTIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Sure.

KAYE: Do you think that this is like campaign some sort of strategy or does he really think that he's in trouble?

MARTIN: Obviously, he is the underdog when you look at the polling data, when you look at how rough the economy is. He has to take that position.

He cannot act like a front-runner. And so that is why I think you see a far more aggressive tone from the president. Also, his campaign is starting up a lot earlier. If you go back to 1992, the campaign of President George W. (sic) Bush, they were a little late to the game. James Baker was unsure if he wanted to come over. Mary Matalin can talk about that, no doubt.

But he recognizes they have to be able to position themselves right now and attack whoever is running for the GOP side because he has to rally his base, but also appeal to independent voters. So absolutely he must act like the underdog.

KAYE: Christopher, everyone who has seen David Axelrod's comment about the president having a titanic struggle ahead of him has sort of been left shaking their head. Was that a mistake, do you think or just part of his overall strategy?

CHRISTOPHER METZLER, ASSOCIATE DEAN, GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY'S SCHOOL OF CONTINUING STUDIES: Well, hey, look, I don't think that -- that dog don't hunt, son. At the end of the day, he is not it be underdog.

He has the power of the presidency. He's got all those kinds of things going for him. In fact, he's talking about a vision. OK. I think what the American people are saying is, we need you to now implement that vision. So this underdog thing, that dog's not going to hunt. I just don't think it's going to work.

KAYE: I want to talk about Herman Cain with you both. But I do have one more question about President Obama.

Roland, does it appear to you that he's been a little bit more say combative since Labor Day? We talk about sort of this new strategy. He's calling out House Republicans by name. Is this also part of the strategy?

MARTIN: Three words: about damn time. Look, one of the criticisms from his supporters is that you have been extending the olive branch. You have been playing nice. And they have been smacking it back in your face.

And so he has to get more aggressive. Do understand part of this whole issue of saying it's a titanic struggle, the underdog, he has to put the fear in into his base so they're not lackadaisical like they were in 2010. And so don't be surprised all of this is about operating over the next three to six months targeting the base and then also once the GOP gets their candidate, you need to transition into also targeting independent voters.

But he has to scare the hell out of his own base for them to get off their butts and say wait a minute, we might lose this thing come November of next year.

KAYE: Yes.

Just very quickly, Christopher, I want to ask you about Herman Cain. He's been saying that he's going to stand by his statements that African-Americans are -- quote -- "brainwashed" against voting for a conservative candidate. He said it again yesterday on FOX. But he also went on to say that he's going to get plenty of support from African-Americans. Listen to what he said.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: The specific statement that I said is that I believe that as the Republican nominee that I will get a minimum of a third of the black vote, not because I'm black, but because of the solutions I'm putting on the table.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: Christopher, will he get a third of the African-American vote?

METZLER: No way. Listen, if Herman Cain gets a third of the African-American vote, here's what I'm going to do. What I'm going to do is, I'm going to wear a Roland Martin-branded ascot while doing the Electric Slide 365 days.

MARTIN: You need to.

KAYE: Oh, no. Don't do it. Don't do that.

(LAUGHTER)

MARTIN: I can tell you how old Christopher is, because the new dance is the Wobble or the Cupid Shuffle. And he's still saying Electric Slide.

(LAUGHTER)

MARTIN: Look, Randi, bottom line is Herman Cain is showing he's delusional if he actually thinks he's going to get one-third of the black vote.

METZLER: Not going to happen.

MARTIN: But, Christopher, here is what I find. Chris always is on my TV One show. Herman Cain won't even do black media. He won't come on shows like mine or on Tom Joyner morning show and others.

So, Herman, if you want to talk to the black people, you might actually want to show up and talk to them if you think you're going to get one-third of their vote. Ain't going to happen.

KAYE: All right, Roland, you can come on any time and use this show to try and get guests on your show.

(CROSSTALK)

MARTIN: I'm just saying, the guy is totally out there with that kind of statement, but, hey, he's not even going to get past the GOP primary. He can say whatever he wants to.

(CROSSTALK)

METZLER: Herman Cain's not going to be the nominee. That's the end of it. He's not going to be the nominee.

KAYE: OK. That is the end of it.

(CROSSTALK) MARTIN: But I want to see Chris in an ascot.

(CROSSTALK)

KAYE: Roland Martin, Christopher Metzler, thank you both. Thank you. Thank you.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: Well, coming up, it is seven inches long, has an HD screen and is a fraction of the cost of a smartphone. So move over iPhone 4S. The cheapest mini-computer is here, which is why you are here. Hint, think nearly 1.2 billion people. It is the world's second most populous nation. It is located in Southern Asia and is bordered by the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal -- 80.5 percent of the population is Hindu, 13.4 percent Muslim and 2.3 percent Christian. Can you guess where we are taking you? We're heading that way in just a couple minutes.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Before the break, we gave you hints about the world's second most populous nation. Now you're here in India, where today the government has announced the world's cheapest computer tablet.

CNN got a sneak peak of the seven-inch device. And it get this. It costs a mere $50. That's right, just $50. India's Ministry of Education plans to make the bargain tablets available to students. The government has already uploaded applications that will allow students to watch lectures, movies and type class notes. But there is a catch, users must have access to Wi-Fi.

And back here in the U.S., 18 deaths are now linked to cantaloupes contaminated with listeria. The Centers for Disease Control reports the bacteria has made at least 100 people sick in 20 states. The Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes were produced Jensen Farms in Colorado. The CDC is urging consumers to dispose of the fruit immediately.

A text, e-mail, video message or the good-old fashioned phone call, smartphone technology has transformed the way we communicate. But there's one phone that's credited with changing it all. That's next.

But, first, in, out, yes, no, will he, won't he? If you were watching us this time yesterday, well, you probably sat through about 45 minutes of Governor Chris Christie's news conference announcing he won't be running for governor. So, Gov, thanks for finally clarifying once and for all, but couldn't you have said no maybe in under a minute? Either way, we're glad your 15 minutes are up, for now at least.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GOV. CHRIS CHRISTIE (R), NEW JERSEY: What I said is I would reconsider my no. And I did. But the no never changed. So, New Jersey, whether you like it or not, you're stuck with me.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Apple is calling its newly introduced iPhone the most amazing phone yet. Even if its competitors don't agree, few can argue that the iPhone has changed our expectations of what a smartphone should be.

CNN's George Howell goes in-depth to show us just how much a part of our lives these little devices have become.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): The alarm for my first appointment and I'm out the door fast, right now 30 minutes ahead of schedule, a quick check of the weather.

(on camera): Not a bad day today.

HOWELL: Sunny, 64 degrees and we're off.

COMPUTER VOICE: Let's go.

HOWELL: My smartphone becomes my traffic buster, showing me the fastest route.

COMPUTER VOICE: Take a right.

HOWELL (on camera): So I have had the iPhone for about a year now. And honestly it's like I'm on the thing all the time. I don't text while driving, because, first of all, that's dangerous. And, secondly, it's illegal in the state of Georgia.

But when I hear a cool song like right now on Pandora, I definitely take note and I might buy that song later.

COMPUTER VOICE: You have reached your destination.

HOWELL (voice-over): A quick check of the headlines before walking into the building, a few must-reply e-mails to send. And now I'm right on time for an interview with a smartphone expert.

JOSH CLARK, AUTHOR, "TAPWORTHY": I'm Josh Clark. I'm a principal of a company called Global Moxie.

HOWELL: Discussing the impact these devices have had on the way we live.

CLARK: It's sort of ridiculous to call these devices phones, right? This is this global telecommunication device laden with personal sensors and navigational aids.

HOWELL: While other phones offer many of the same features, Clark says Apple led the way in a quiet revolution making the phone feature one of thousands of different apps like this one that reads quick response codes. You can scan them and get links to deals and information.

(on camera): Josh, typically, we do an interview like this over satellite. But, today, we're using the iPhone over FaceTime. What do you think?

CLARK: I mean, it's crazy, right? This is in many ways sort of the first time in my adult life with this device that my childhood vision of the future has really come to pass.

HOWELL (voice-over): It's like a mini-computer. You can watch movies, read e-books instead of traditional books. There's a built-in camera for still pics and videos, a calendar function, and a better way to keep contacts, an alarm clock.

(on camera): And last but not least, it is also a phone that combines all of these things into one device and once you have one, it's hard to imagine what life was like without it.

George Howell, CNN, Atlanta.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: So true. Apple's new iPhone four will cost you $199 if you sign up for a two-year plan.

All right, every day on this show, we call someone out who quite frankly deserves it. Today, it is the Fullerton, California, Police Department, and, yes, one of its finest. Actually, that's a bit of a stretch.

You may recall one Fullerton officer is facing charges of second- degree murder and manslaughter and another faces a lesser charge in the brutal beating death of a homeless man named Kelly Thomas. We have covered that case a lot on this show.

But now Fullerton police have been reprimanded by a federal judge for, get this, putting a police officer accused of groping women back on patrol. The department actually allowed the officer to keep working the streets, where seven women, not one, seven women had accused him of sexual harassment and groping during arrests.

In his denial to dismiss brought by two of the alleged victims, the judge ruled that the city -- quote -- "simply did not care what officers did to women during arrests."

The officer is now on administrative leave and the city has agreed to a deal to resolve the lawsuit, according to "The L.A. Times." The settlement is about $500,000.

Whatever happened to protect and serve? For this, Fullerton police, it's time for you to face the music.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) (NEWS BREAK)

KAYE: The Tampa Bay Rays were the Cinderella story of September with a dramatic run to the A.L. wild card , but the fairy tale is over. Adrian Beltre hit three home runs to help the defending A.L. champion Texas Rangers eliminate the Rays three game storm one. A TBS cameraman took a fall as he was jogging beside Beltre after one of the homer, yes. The announcers later said -- ouch -- that the camera guy was OK.

Now, as all baseball fans know, TBS is the place to go for exclusive coverage of the division series games, two National League games tonight and the A.L. is back at it tomorrow.

And my next guest is showing up every day at TBS to give the fans his take on the day's playoff action. That would be baseball Hall of Famer and MLB studio analyst Cal Ripken Jr.

Cal, thank you so much for your time today. Happy to have you on the show.

The Rays were a good story. Let's talk about that. But in the end, they were eliminated by the Rangers for the second straight year. How did this happen?

CAL RIPKEN JR., FORMER MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL PLAYER: Well, the Rays were a hot team. And when you look at it, it was amazing. You didn't think that they should even be there. They lost a good portion of their team last year, but Joe Maddon really had those guys playing well.

They had the best pitching in the whole league, but that wasn't enough to stand up against the Texas Rangers and especially Adrian Beltre yesterday. Texas is a good, good team, diverse offense. And also they can score runs with their legs, but they also can score runs with the home run ball. And yesterday they broke out in a big way.

So, yes, Tampa's story is over, but Texas learning from the experience last year going to the World Series, is a very hot team, a very good team to deal with.

KAYE: Yes. I want to show you some video. Take a look at this with me.

RIPKEN: Sure.

KAYE: It's the beginning really of a home plate collision. This is Texas catcher Mike Napoli being run over by a Rays player. This play is completely legal in pro baseball as you watch it happen here. But should it be? I mean, should it be legal?

(CROSSTALK)

RIPKEN: It's all part of the game. Yes, there was some controversy earlier on when Buster Posey got hurt and there was some talk how can we protect the catcher like they do I guess in protecting the quarterback in the NFL?

But certainly there are times when the runner has to get to home plate. The catcher loves to block the plate in this regard and it is part of the game. Sometimes, the runners go out of their way to get to the catcher and sometimes the catcher sneaks back and trips you and does other things. There are some sneaky little tricks that you would like to get rid of in the game, but for the most part, that play is a good hard baseball play.

KAYE: So, let me ask you this. Who do you like in the National League?

RIPKEN: Well, the Phillies are a team that it's not hard not to like, because they have the best pitching, they have a collection of number one aces on their team.

But the Saint Louis Cardinals, much like the Tampa Bay Rays, finished really, really strong, gutsy team, strong team. They have got their pitching aligned right at the right time. They have an uphill battle. They are down 2-1. But it looks like the Phillies. And I like the Brewers. The Brewers have a lot of depth in their pitching staff. They gained some experience. They have got good offensive players. Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder are really having a good series right now.

So the Brewers and the Phillies, I will probably take the Phillies in a close battle there. So maybe it's Texas and the Phillies in the finals.

KAYE: Yes. I got my producer in my ear. I got to tell you, my producer Kelly (ph) is in my ear, Cal, yelling Yankees, Yankees.

(LAUGHTER)

RIPKEN: Well, the Yankees -- you never count the Yankees out. It almost seems like when they were down 2-1 -- that's going to be a great game. It's a great series already with Detroit. Detroit had the -- arguably the best pitcher in the whole league pitching against them.

But his effectiveness was taken away because of the weather. The Yankees are still in it, 2-2. They get to go home. So that ought to be a great, great game.

KAYE: All right.

Cal Ripken Jr., great to have you on the show. Love talking baseball with you. We're glad you could make the time. I know you're pretty busy these days. But thank you so much for your time.

RIPKEN: Thanks. My pleasure. Thanks for having me.

KAYE: And that will do it for me for this hour.

And I will toss it over to Brooke Baldwin.