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Jobs Bill Battle Looms in Senate; Openly Gay Minister Ordained; Plan to Rescue Troubled European Bank; Michael Jackson's Doctor on Trial; California "Dream Act" Signed; Trial of Alleged Underwear Bomber
Aired October 09, 2011 - 14:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello. You're in the CNN NEWSROOM this Sunday, October 9th. I'm Fredricka Whitfield.
A looming showdown over the president's jobs bill. The Senate is expected to vote on the measure early this week. The $447 billion package will be paid for by a tax on millionaires which would raise revenues by $453 billion over 10 years.
It includes funding for infrastructure projects and job training. A live report on the brewing battle is just seconds away.
And Ron Paul racks up another straw poll victory. The president - the Republican presidential candidate finished first at the conservative Values Voter Summit this weekend, winning 37 percent of the straw poll vote.
Herman Cain came in second, with 23 percent; and Rick Santorum finished third with 16 percent.
Herman Cain says the bad economy is having a greater impact on African-Americans, but the GOP candidate says racism is not the reason why.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I don't believe racism in this country today holds anybody back in a big way. Is there some - are there some elements of racism? Yes.
It gets back to if we don't grow this economy, that is a ripple effect for every economic level, and because blacks are more disproportionately unemployed, they get hit the worst when economic policies don't work.
That's where it starts. Grow this economy, and it's going to help everybody to get jobs and to get back in the workforce.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Cain and his rival Republican candidates hold a debate on the economy at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire on Tuesday. The voices of protesters are filling the streets again today in New York and other cities across the country. The "Occupy Wall Street" protests are now in their 23rd day. Among other things, demonstrators are angry over social and financial inequalities and what they say is corporate greed.
To track "Occupy Wall Street" and to contribute your own angle, visit CNN.com/OpenStory. It's a new way to get involved and share your voice. Again, that's CNN.com/OpenStory.
And now back to the president's jobs bill. The Senate is expected to hold a critical test vote on the measure earlier this week, but as CNN's Athena Jones reports, it's sure to face fierce opposition from Republicans.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ATHENA JONES, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): For President Obama, putting people back to work is high priority, and something he says his $447 billion jobs bill will do.
BARACK OBAMA, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: These independent economists say that we could grow the economy as much as two percent, and as many as 1.9 million workers.
JONES: He's been pushing the plan everywhere - at a press conference last week, on the road, on Facebook and Twitter, and in his weekly address.
OBAMA: This is not the time for the usual games or political gridlock in Washington.
JONES: The bill would cut payroll taxes, extend unemployment benefits, give tax credits for raising wages or hiring out-of-work veterans or the long-term unemployed and provide money to keep public workers on the job and invest in rebuilding schools and roads. It would be paid for with a 5.6 percent tax on income over $1 million starting in 2013.
The political stakes for Mr. Obama are high. No president since Franklin Roosevelt has been re-elected with an unemployment rate above eight percent.
Still, chances are slim that the entire package will pass in this political climate. And even if it survives the Senate, it faces a tough road in the House.
REP. PAUL RYAN (R), WISCONSIN: We have a difference of opinion with the White House on how best to create jobs. We don't think doubling down on failed stimulus policies, which have already proven to fail, is the right way to go.
JONES: House Republicans say the bill will do little to create jobs.
REP. DARRELL ISSA (R), CALIFORNIA: It's doing the same thing that he's done before and expecting it to have a different outcome.
RYAN: We want to work with ideas that are proven to work. That means helping small businesses grow, that means getting certainty on our policy, regulations, taxes, debt, so that small businesses can grow.
JONES: Economists say some of the bill's provisions, like the payroll tax cut for employers, would add jobs, though how many is in question.
DONALD MARRON, DIRECTOR, TAX POLICY CENTER: There isn't enough demand for the goods and services our economy can produce, and so things you can do to boost that will at least temporarily create more jobs next year.
JONES: Temporarily, analysts say, is the key word.
MARRON: So the kinds of things that are being discussed are not by any stretch permanent solutions. The economy is suffering after the financial crisis. It takes a long time to heal, and, frankly, there aren't anything that's on the Congressional calendar that will substantially change that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
JONES: Now both the president and the vice president will be hitting the road again this week, traveling to two battleground states, Pennsylvania and Michigan, to push this jobs bill, Fred.
WHITFIELD: OK, so let's talk about on Capitol Hill, what is likely to happen in the U.S. Senate?
JONES: Well, you know, the first challenge is this key test vote. It's a key first step, and it's not even clear that the Democrats will get enough votes to move past this. As you know, only 53 senators caucus with the Democrats - that's 51 Democrats and two Independents that caucus with them.
They need 60 votes to keep this going forward, and so it's really a big question whether that's going to happen. Most people think that it wouldn't. And, as I mentioned, in the GOP-controlled House, there's not a lot of appetite for this jobs bill - Fred.
WHITFIELD: All right, Athena Jones, thanks so much, from the White House.
All right, in other headlines now, American fugitive George Wright is fighting extradition. He was arrested in Portugal last month after 40 years on the run. His lawyer says Wright has heart and blood pressure problems.
Wright is accused of hijacking a plane back in 1972 along with four other members of the Black Liberation Army.
Kansas City Police say they are glad the parents of a missing 10- month-old girl are talking to them again, calling their involvement critical. Jeremy Irwin and Deborah Bradley say they never stopped cooperating, they were simply exhausted from all the questioning.
Their baby Lisa was last seen asleep in her crib last Monday night.
And this Sunday the Presbyterian Church USA has its first openly gay minister. The Reverend Scott Anderson was ordained yesterday in Madison, Wisconsin.
Anderson lost his ordination 21 years ago when he was outed by members of his congregation in Sacramento, California. Last May, the church voted to allow gays and lesbians to serve as ministers and lay leaders.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
REV. SCOTT ANDERSON, OPENLY GAY ORDAINED MINISTER: By this act today, the Presbyterian Church is living what it believes. We are - we are witnessing with some integrity to what we proclaim to be true about God.
REV. MARK ACHTEMEIER, FORMER OPPONENT OF GAY ORDINATIONS: I don't think the Christian faith was designed to destroy people like that, and so I figured something's wrong here. I've - I've missed something and went back to studying the Bible over a period of years and, you know, found I had missed some - missed a lot of stuff along the way.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Three other mainline Protestant churches also allow gay ordinations, the Episcopal and Evangelical Lutheran Churches and the United Church of Christ.
All right, money, markets and the global community. It's the topic of the day in Berlin. Before we take you there, however, do you know what the eurozone is?
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, let's talk about the global economy right now. The focus today is on the eurozone.
What's that? It's defined as the geographic and economic region that consists of all the European Union countries that use the euro as their national currency.
Let's take a look at some other international headlines right now.
All right, Libya's new transitional leaders say their troops are close to taking over Moammar Gadhafi's hometown. They say 10 people died in overnight fighting for Sirte.
Demonstrators protesting Syria's crackdown on dissidents attacked the Syrian embassies in Berlin, London and Vienna. They actually managed to enter the embassies in Berlin and Vienna, causing significant damage there.
Syria's foreign minister is hinting at retaliation. He says Syria will not protect the embassies of countries that fail to protect Syrian embassies on their soil. He also warns that Syria will take strong measures against any country that recognizes a Syrian opposition council recently formed in Turkey.
So, with the eurozone debt crisis showing no sign of letting up, two of the continent's top leaders held talks today. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said they will work together to recapitalize European banks.
Their meeting came on the same day that France, Belgium and Luxemburg agreed on a plan to rescue Dexia, a troubled Franco-Belgian bank.
Senior international business correspondent Richard Quest joins us now from Brussels. So Richard, how did Dexia get into this kind of trouble to the extent that a rescue plan is needed?
RICHARD QUEST, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Very simple - it had huge toxic assets of debts; there are worries about the bank's inability to pay its debts. And so what happened is, other banks refused to lend to it.
It's almost a carbon copy of what happened in 2008 with the likes of Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers, on a much smaller scale perhaps, but basically what we are seeing is banks refusing to engage in the normal money market activities with anybody that they feel might go under. Nobody wants to be holding the baby in this particular case.
WHITFIELD: So it seems like an awful lot is being done to make sure that Dexia is secure. Why this bank? Why wouldn't this be an institution that would be allowed to fall by the wayside as a result of its troubles? And why is so much being done to save it?
QUEST: Good question. And, simply put, because it's a big bank across France, Belgium and Luxemburg. And, not only that, it's a retail bank. It's the equivalent of a JP Morgan Chase or a - a Bank of America or Wells Fargo. It actually has branches with people that go in to do banking.
So what they've done is they've taken those parts of the bank and they're going to sell them off and they're going to put them into government ownership or nationalize them. Depositors will be safe. The ordinary men and women, they're OK.
You then take the investment bank. Now, what you don't want, you really don't want the investment bank to fail. Why? Because a big investment bank failing at this particular time would cause a ripple of crisis of confidence, and that's what happened with Lehman in 2008.
We're going to see more banks over the coming weeks, whether they fail or not, they're going to need more money. And what the authorities are going to have to judge is when is it right to rescue and when is it time to let go? They're going to have to be very careful because their experience shows if a crisis of confidence happens, then the whole lot comes down around your ears.
WHITFIELD: OK, so you're warning of that potential ripple of confidence, but then what kind of a ripple effect might there be, say, you know, to the United States to the, you know, flailing American economy? How might this make an impact?
QUEST: Well, we've already seen that a lot of U.S. banks are refusing now or not lending dollars in Europe, which is why the British, the Swiss, the - and the ECB all had to have a dollar swap with the Fed. There's not - the - the trust factor has evaporated.
And what the fear will be is if Europe's banks continue, everybody - and with the mess they're in - everybody in the U.S., in the banking sector, will be looking over their shoulder, who's next? How much do I owe that bank? How much do they owe me? And, if that happens, I'm afraid this spiral down starts up again.
Now we're some way off there yet, not too far. We are some way off there. And what we have to expect and what I would expect in the days and weeks ahead, as this banking crisis gets worse, I would expect the authorities - the Treasury, the Fed, the ECB - anybody who can flood money into the system will make it clear to the banks, those banks that need it will be helped.
WHITFIELD: Richard Quest, thanks so much, in Brussels.
Also in Europe, a tribute concert for the late Michael Jackson, and his three children were there. We'll have details from Wales after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Michael Jackson's kids were among the 50,000 Jackson fans attending the Michael Forever tribute concert in Wales. Jackson's three children took to the stage to introduce a video appearance by Beyonce.
The sold out concert featured artists doing their own renditions of Jackson songs. Christina Aguilera, Gladys Knight, Smokey Robinson and Michael's sister La Toya were among those who performed.
All right, now to Los Angeles. It will be Tuesday before we hear any more testimony in the trial of Michael Jackson's personal doctor. Jurors heard Dr. Conrad Murray for the first time Friday.
Our Ted Rowlands has more on what we know so far about the day Jackson died.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
TED ROWLANDS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Murray trial ended the week with riveting testimony from Conrad Murray via an audiotape. The jury listened as Murray talked to investigators, and this was done just two days after Michael Jackson died.
He talked about the fact that when he came on board to take care of Michael Jackson, he found out he would be giving him propofol on a daily basis. He said each and every night he put Michael Jackson to sleep using propofol, except, he said, for the three days leading up to Jackson's death. He said he was trying to wean him off of propofol, and that was the only time that he didn't give it to him.
Listen carefully as Murray tells investigators what happened during those crucial minutes where Jackson was unresponsive.
DR. CONRAD MURRAY, MICHAEL JACKSON'S PERSONAL DOCTOR: No, I came back to his bedside and was (INAUDIBLE) in the sense that he wasn't breathing. Immediately, I felt for a pulse and I was able to get a steady (ph) pulse in the femoral region. His body was warm. There was no change in color.
I then lifted his leg, which can give you what is an auto transfusion, and then I continued to do CPR and mouth to mouth resuscitation until the paramedics came. When the paramedics came, they called UCLA, they hooked him up to the pulse oximeter. He was not breathing.
ROWLANDS: The headline from this audio, of course, is that Murray never mentions any of the telephone calls that we've already heard in court, phone calls to his girlfriends and to his office staff during those critical periods. It's something the defense will have to grapple with in closing arguments.
Looking forward to next week, what we're looking at is Monday is a dark day. There's no court at all. And on Tuesday we'll hear the tail end of this audio tape. It's about a two hour long tape. We got through about an - an hour and 40 minutes, so we'll finish that up and then it'll be cross-examination time of the detective that's on the stand.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, Ted.
All right, remember, you can watch this trial gavel to gavel on our sister network, HLN. But then, that will be on Tuesday, remember.
All right, meantime, oh, I know it says fall in most places, but this looks like January, like right in the heart of winter in the Rockies. Well, it is Denver, after all, but heavy snow already coating the roads and the highways after the season's first big storm.
Check the calendar again, October? Should that be happening?
Anyway, well -
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Some people are happy about that, though --
WHITFIELD: Really? JERAS: -- skiers.
WHITFIELD: Well, of course.
JERAS: Wolf Creek opened up this weekend.
WHITFIELD: Skiing in October.
JERAS: Yes. It's open right now. There are people on the slopes.
WHITFIELD: Now, it wasn't that long ago it was in the 80s.
JERAS: I know, right?
WHITFIELD: That's what's so freaky and weird.
JERAS: Yes.
WHITFIELD: So you can't really get used to this snow, this blanket of snow, because they know that weird stuff could still be on the way before it's really ski season.
JERAS: Well, they've seen 44 inches, so it would take a bit to melt -
WHITFIELD: Oh, my goodness.
JERAS: -- all of that back down. So that's a lot of snow just in the last week.
WHITFIELD: Oh, my gosh.
JERAS: But -
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: -- making their plans early (ph) this year.
JERAS: I know, right?
WHITFIELD: Yes.
JERAS: It's going to be a good ski year. I have a feeling.
WHITFIELD: OK.
JERAS: All right, what's not pretty, normally when you look at Miami you think beautiful, sunshine. Not so much today.
Take a look at this live picture. WPLG is our affiliate there. Seventy-nine degrees, so it's warm and feeling tropical.
WHITFIELD: (INAUDIBLE).
JERAS: Yes. PLG, is that where you worked? WHITFIELD: Yes. Yes.
JERAS: All right. Yay.
WHITFIELD: Go PLG! Go Miami.
JERAS: Big shout out to PLG from Fred.
WHITFIELD: Yes. Love you all.
JERAS: Yes, not loving the weather today, though. She's happier that she's here.
Three inches of rain yesterday. Today, we could, you know, see that number almost doubled. Fifty-mile-an hour gusts, we've had a lot of flooding, a lot of streets have been covered with water, not just in South Florida but into central parts of the state, too.
Take a look at that radar picture. There you can see all of the clouds and all the wet weather that's been coming in. And Florida is going to be our big story.
Here's some other rainfall totals that we've seen throughout the weekend. More than eight inches in Vero Beach; Cocoa Beach, you had about seven; five and three quarters almost in Melbourne; and then Texas, also, you guys have a storm here and looking at two to three inches of rainfall, and that was just from yesterday.
So we have a system here that's trying to develop. It's trying to get itself organized. Hurricane Center says maybe a 30 percent chance or so that this thing could develop into a tropical or subtropical system. It looks like it could get what will call a closed circulation, and if that happens that means it has a chance to get a little bit stronger.
But, either way, we're going to continue to see a lot of rain, especially along the East Coast. All this moisture is going to start to spread on up to the north, so we'll be watching heavy rain in the coast of the Carolinas into Georgia, and this is going to move all the way up the coast as we head into the week. And there you can see the flood watches which are in effect as a result of that.
The rain continues across the Plains with their stationary front here. But this will start to stall out and begin to fade out by Tuesday. Things will look a little bit drier - Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: OK. That's good. Thanks so much, Jacqui. It looks like a fairly decent week.
JERAS: Not terrible.
WHITFIELD: Fairly decent work week.
JERAS: But that Miami picture wasn't real good, though.
WHITFIELD: OK. Well, you know, but we know tomorrow will be sunny, or very soon thereafter. All right, thanks a lot.
OK, today was wedding day for Paul McCartney. The legendary musician married his American girlfriend, Nancy Shevell, in London. The only other surviving ex-Beatle, Ringo Starr, of course, he was there, one of the special guests. This is McCartney's third marriage and Shevell's second.
Today's wedding took place in Marylebone Town Hall, the same place where McCartney married his first wife, Linda. She died in 1998. McCartney's second marriage ended in divorce.
A day in court for so-called Underwear Bomber. Details of that trial after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, checking our top stories right now, the U.S. Senate will hold a critical test vote this week on President Obama's jobs plan. The $447 billion bill would provide money for road and bridge projects and would cut payroll taxes. It would be paid for with a tax on millionaires starting in 2013.
And with the eurozone debt crisis showing no sign of letting up, two of the continent's top leaders held talks today. French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel said they will work together to recapitalize European banks.
Their meeting came on the same day that France, Belgium and Luxemburg agreed on a rescue plan for Dexia, a troubled Franco-Belgian bank.
The "Occupy Wall Street" protests are in their 23rd day. The movement started in New York and has spread across the country. Among other things, demonstrators are angry over social and financial inequalities and what they say is corporate greed.
To track "Occupy Wall Street" and to contribute your own angle, visit CNN.com/OpenStory. It's a new way to get involved and share your - your voice and your story. Again, that's CNN.com/OpenStory.
All right, California Governor Jerry Brown has signed a bill that will make it easier for illegal immigrants to attend college. Under the California Dream Act, immigrants who were on a path toward legal status will be eligible for state financial aid.
Public reaction is mixed.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We struggle just to ensure that our daughter can go to school, so for me to have an opinion for somebody who's not legal to have that financial aid or to have that opportunity, I'm a bit bitter with that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think it's a good idea, like - like I've heard as long as they're just, you know, showing documentation and, obviously, if they're performing well, that they're not wasting our time here, and we should at least give them the money to at least pursue their dream here in America.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: The California Dream Act is expected to provide help to about 2,500 students.
A jury has been selected in the trial of accused underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab.
CNN national correspondent Susan Candiotti joins us now with details on that - Susan.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fred.
Twenty-four-year-old Farouk Abdulmutallab so far hasn't been a shrinking violet in court. During jury selection he shouted out, "Anwar is alive," referring to Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-born cleric said to be his inspiration. Awlaki was targeted and killed by the U.S. in a recent drone attack.
The evidence against Abdulmutallab appears strong. Passengers and flight attendants are slated to take the stand against him, witnesses who wrestled him as he allegedly used chemicals and a syringe to light explosives in his underwear.
It happened as a Northwest Airlines Christmas Day 2009 flight from the Netherlands was starting its descent to Detroit. Prosecutors say his timing, along with sitting near a wing and fuel tank, would have caused maximum damage.
A jury of nine women - six white, two black, one Southeast Asian; and three white men, will hear the case that begins today - on Tuesday, rather. Abdulmutallab is representing himself and, if found guilty, he faces life in prison.
WHITFIELD: So, Susan, critics of the Obama administration opposed to actually trying him in a civilian court?
CANDIOTTI: You know they were, Fred. Some felt that Abdulmutallab should have been handled as an entity combatant and put before a military commission at Gitmo, but the attorney general decided otherwise, saying U.S. courts have successfully handled other terror cases in civilian courts, including shoe bomber Richard Reid and convicted would-be subway bomber Nazi Bullazazi and the Times Square bomber Faisal Shahzad.
WHITFIELD: All right, Susan Candiotti, thanks so much, in New York.
All right, taking now a look at the week ahead, former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin will visit South Korea to speak at a global gathering of business leaders. Palin will speak at the world knowledge forum in Seoul tomorrow night. President Barack Obama will host talks and an official state dinner for South Korea's president on Thursday. The White House says that the visit will highlight the global partnership and deep economic ties between the U.S. and Republic of Korea.
And the world's scrabble championship takes place in Warsaw, Poland this week. Opening ceremonies begin on Wednesday and the champion should be crowned by Sunday. The winner will receive a grand prize of $20,000.
All right, stopping bullies in their tracks. We'll hear from a teenage race car driver who's part of an anti-bullying campaign and he himself has been a victim of bullies.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, bullying is a problem for a lot of kids across America, but there are ways to fight back. The "Great American No Bull Challenge" is a national campaign aimed at stopping bullies and Zach Veach is a spokesman for the campaign.
He's one of the youngest licensed race car drivers in the country and he is with us right now from Columbus, Ohio. And he's also the author of "A 99 Things Teens Wish They Knew Before Turning 16." By the way, he is 16. Zach, tell us more about this "Great American No Bull Challenge" and why you decided to be involved?
ZACH VEACH, TEEN RACE CAR DRIVER: Well, I mean, for me growing up, I was trying to pursue my dream and when I was going through public school, I was bullied a little.
And, you know, it kind of teams bullies try to pick on kids that try to be different and they really want you to follow in line and be the same as everybody else.
I wanted to join a great cause and I saw the "Great No Bull Challenge" and they're the biggest campaign out there trying to put an end to cyber bullying and I thought what not a better way to get my message out than to help them out as well.
WHITFIELD: So you write about in your book that one of the things that you were picked on about was your, as you put it in your book, your lack of height. And so there were some who gave you a hard time calling you midget.
There was name calling and all that. You kind of used reverse psychology to get back at that person. Tell me how that made the difference and what do you mean by that, reverse psychology?
VEACH: I mean after a while I couldn't take it anymore. I was kind of like, you know, maybe I'm normal and maybe you're just a giant is the comeback I used.
WHITFIELD: And it worked?
VEACH: I just always -- yes. You know, he didn't have anything to say because I don't think he was expecting that to come back for from me after I kind of politely shook it off for a while. But you know, I always thought my parents taught me violence is never an option for that.
I didn't want to do anything that would put me to his level, so I just decided to use that and from that point on, I just tried to help other kids, you know, use the terms I did or use the way I did to kind of settle down their problems.
WHITFIELD: So what are some of the other recommendations you have for kids who don't really know what to do? They even feel I guess a little hesitant about telling anybody they're being bullied, someone whether it's physical or whether it's name calling? What's your advice on the first approach? How does a kid kind of muster up the courage that you had?
WHITFIELD: Well, I mean, it's definitely hard because I was in the same shoes as them and it's a little embarrassing at times, but I mean you have to realize that they're just doing -- you're being bullied because people might be jealous of what you're doing because they might not have the opportunity to.
You just have to use that, the energy that they give you, the negative energy, to kind of fuel yourself, to push yourself that much more. That's what I did. And they told me I couldn't be a race car driver and I just put everything together to show them that, you know, I can if I really try hard.
It's just the faster you fix the problem maybe you can even help the bully at the end of the day. Everybody goes through bad parts in their life and if you can help them out as well, maybe you can move yourselves both forward at the end of the day.
WHITFIELD: And that's you racing in the Indy Racing League. How long have you been driving, Zach?
VEACH: Well, actually, started kind of late. I started when I was 12 years old in go-carts.
WHITFIELD: Gosh, can't believe that's considered late because so many start at 6. I mean, I talked to some NASCAR drivers early this year and they talked about starting with go-carts when they were 6. So you started late, but then what gave you the upper hand to be able to compete on this level and stay in the race?
VEACH: Well, I knew I was behind by starting when I was 12, so I made sure that I was at the racetrack any time I could and having the bullying problem made me push hard to show everybody I do have the ability to do this.
I've been fortunate along the way. I have great parents that have helped me out and with online school K-12 it's also they're great because if it wasn't for the teachers and the schooling system they have, I couldn't be doing what I've been doing.
WHITFIELD: Wow. VEACH: It's really a help from a lot of people.
WHITFIELD: Incredible. So you really have persevered. You know, one thing you did talk about in your book and I do want to kind of call a little attention to it.
Because you mentioned, while nobody wants to respond with physical violence, that kind of bullying with physical violence, you did write sometimes you do have to kind of fight back.
So how do you advise other kids to kind of find that happy medium so they don't find themselves in such a big physical battle that it does more harm than good?
VEACH: Yes. I mean, definitely there's a certain extent and you have to look at because if there is a point where a bully is trying to hurt you physically, I mean, you have to defend yourself.
But when it comes to things like name calling or possibly making fun of, it's definitely you don't want to respond with physical contact because I mean that's really not going to help anybody at the end of the day.
You don't want to hurt yourself with it. If you can just help each other move forward by getting adults to help out. That would be more kind of logical way to do it than sometimes 16-year-olds or anything.
WHITFIELD: Zach Veach, thanks so much. All the best. Again the book is "99 Things Teens Wish They Knew Before Turning 16." All the best in the Indy Racing League. We'll be watching. Remember the name Zach Veach. Thanks, Zach.
All right, that really helps us underscore that it is time for all of us to take a stand. Our Anderson Cooper hosts a town hall conversation about putting an end to bullying. Watch "Bullying: It Stops Here" tonight at 8:00 Eastern Time.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: "Occupy Wall Street" protests are now in their fourth week and the movement is spreading to other cities. Politicians are taking note of the demonstrators' growing frustration over the economy.
Joining right now us from Washington, John Aravosis with Americablog of the Democratic Party Persuasion, and Doug Heye, a blogger and Republican Strategist. All right, good to see both of you, gentlemen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Thank you. Happy Sunday.
WHITFIELD: Happy Sunday. So let's talk about how "Occupy Wall Street" and politics may be colliding. The Tea Party, you know, thought that unfair government -- that it was unfair that the government was bailing out the big guys. Similar to what is provoking this "Occupy Wall Street." So you have to wonder, John, you know, "Occupy Wall Street" says it's not political, yet do you see it in some way influencing the race for 2012?
JOHN ARAVOSIS, AMERICABLOG: Potentially, yes. I mean, I think what started off as a small protest that, you know, a lot of us didn't pay attention to. I admit that the first month I wasn't really watching it very closely either, has turned into something kind of large that now we have the president weighing in.
We have Nancy Pelosi. We have the Republican candidates. I think it's impossible to avoid the political implications, but especially if this turns into more of a nationwide movement where people's frustration about the economy, about not taking on Wall Street finding out how they got us into this mess, I think that per se will have a political element in an election year.
WHITFIELD: Doug, is it inevitable?
DOUG HEYE, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: I don't think it's inevitable. We need to see more of what this is about. The Tea Party really started as a reaction to Obamacare, to the stimulus bill as well as the bailouts. We don't know what this agenda, if there is an agenda is. Part of the circus --
WHITFIELD: They've been pretty open about a lot of things from, you know, big government -- you know, government bailing out, you know, big banks, et cetera, unemployment being what it is, people having a hard time getting a job. It's a hodge-podge, but a lot of stuff that is hoisting frustration.
ARAVOSIS: Lack of banking reform, lack of investigating Wall Street. No prosecutions of a single person on Wall Street. Come on.
WHITFIELD: OK. So then Doug, back to you, you know, is it going to be up to these presidential contenders, you know, to involve what's going on in Wall Street in their campaigning?
HEYE: Well, I think they've been doing that anyways and they'll continue to talk about the economy and jobs. It certainly what Herman Cain's background speaks to. It's what Mitt Romney has talked about, Governor Perry's record in Texas.
WHITFIELD: But so far, it looks like Ron Paul is the only one who's really kind of chiming in with I relate to what's going on with "Occupy Wall Street." The other candidates are kind of staying away with it.
HEYE: Why you see them --
WHITFIELD: Sorry, Doug, on that again?
HEYE: I think that's why you see Ron Paul not actually doing very well in the polls when it comes to where the candidates are. WHITFIELD: He's done well in some recent straw polls. OK, so, you know, John, give me an idea whether these other candidates, Ron Paul has kind of stuck himself out there. He has been talking about the "Occupy Wall Street."
Are the other Republican contenders going to feel pressure they've got to make a very clear stance on where they are with "Occupy Wall Street" and whether people who are there in Lower Manhattan will feel the pressure to make it a political event?
ARAVOSIS: I think there's going to be ongoing pressure and increasing pressure for the Republicans to show some sympathy for Main Street. I think traditionally the Republican Party has a little too much sympathy for Wall Street and not enough for the middle class.
And I think, you know, one might even say the Republicans practice class warfare by only representing the upper class. So I think there's always that pressure, but it depends where these protests go.
They have grown exponentially over the last month really. If it keeps growing at this rate, I don't know how the candidates are going to sort of avoid talking about it and expressing some sympathy.
WHITFIELD: In the meantime, let's talk about something else this weekend, you had these comments being made about, you know, equating the Mormon faith with a cult.
John, is, you know, Rick Perry addressing it enough, is he trying to distance himself? What he said been enough on the record to say that I guess those comments from his supporters is going to go away?
ARAVOSIS: You know, Rick Perry is in a tough spot and I think Romney is as well. These are two candidates who have no problem invoking God, invoking religion to talk about their policy prescriptions.
Let's talk about gay marriage. They're going to talk about God there. Romney, Reverend Wright, Obama's kind of wacky preacher during the campaign, remember, Romney had no problem saying we need to know why he's seeking religious advice from this kind of person. Then why should we not ask who Romney is seeking.
WHITFIELD: All right, so Doug, real quick because we're almost out of time. I want you to weigh in on that one.
HEYE: Yes. You know, I remember having to deal with the real nonsense about whether the president was Muslim or not last year and tried to put some of those rumors to rest. The strikes --
ARAVOSIS: Romney is a Mormon. This isn't a myth. This isn't a myth. It was a myth that Obama was a Muslim.
HEYE: What I'm talking about -- I'm sorry. What I'm talking about is the rhetoric that's being used. I think it's damaging to the party and in fact, damaging to the country. If we want to continue to go down this road, if supporters of any candidate want to go down this road, what they're going to do is they're going to hurt that candidate.
WHITFIELD: OK.
ARAVOSIS: Well, you're going to take God out of your party. That should be interesting.
HEYE: I don't think that's what I said at all, actually, no.
WHITFIELD: All right, John Aravosis, Doug Heye, wish we had more time because we're out of time. But we'll have you back and we'll continue this conversation I know again. Thanks so much, gentlemen.
All right and for the latest political news, you know exactly where to go, cnnpolitics.com.
Close range fighting in Moammar Gadhafi's hometown. Is Sirte about to fall? We'll go live to Libya.
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WHITFIELD: Libya's new transitional leaders say their troops are close to taking over Moammar Gadhafi's hometown. Senior international correspondent Nic Robertson is in Tripoli.
So, Nic, we've heard reports that troops were closing in on Sirte before. Is there anything different this time?
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN SENIOR INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, I think what's different today and this is, perhaps, significant, but it's still far from a complete control of Sirte, is that the two places where they -- the National Transitional Council fighters say Gadhafi's loyalists have been holding out, the strongest in recent days, a university conference center area and a hospital.
The rebels say they've taken control of those areas now. What's interesting is, in the hospital they captured 17 Gadhafi loyalists, but if it's only a handful, 17, that have been holding out and holding back, the rebels for so long, it gives an indication that this fight is still far from over.
That there are other parts of the city that they don't control and it could take them still some time to bring that full control -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: So what about the fighting in another Gadhafi stronghold of Bani Walid. What's going on there?
WHITFIELD: Well, the National Transitional Council spokesmen say that they are still making gains there. That they've taken control of some key high ground close to the city, but again, it is really essentially a standoff.
And the main focus really from what we're being told is on Sirte because the government says once Sirte falls, that will begin the process of forming a transitional government, which begins the process of moving forwards elections.
They've sort of made Bani Walid a side issue. What happens there, as long as Sirte falls, they're moving ahead with this process of a new government here -- Fredricka.
WHITFIELD: All right, still no clues as to where Moammar Gadhafi may be. Nic Robertson, thanks so much.
All right, more jobs in America a rise in the minimum wage and a decent shopping season. Our money team will be along with America's bottom line.
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WHITFIELD: Jobs, paychecks and retail sales, our money team is keeping an eye on all of that starting with Alison Kosik.
ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Fredricka. The U.S. economy added 103,000 new jobs last month, stronger than expected and a rare bit of good news about the labor market. The numbers for July and August were also revised higher by a total of almost 100,000.
Construction, retail and professional services were among the sectors adding jobs. It wasn't all good news though. The unemployment rate stubbornly high stuck at 9.1 percent for the third month in a row, and the economy has recovered open a fraction of the almost 9 million jobs lost since the recession began -- Felicia.
FELICIA TAYLOR, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Alison. Workers in eight states could see their paychecks get a boost come January. Colorado, Montana, Ohio, Oregon and Washington recently announced minimum wage hikes.
Arizona, Florida and Vermont are expected to announce similar increases in the next couple weeks. The increases range from 28 to 37 cents an hour. Now that adds up to annual raises of up to $770 for full-time workers.
These states link their minimum wage to inflation. The federal minimum wage is $7.25 an hour and that works out to a little more than $15,000 a year -- Poppy.
POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Thanks so much, Felicia. Well, retail sales figures for September are due out on Friday. Analysts expect sales to have risen last month after coming in virtually flat in August.
Figures released by individual store chains last week indicated that retailers had a pretty solid back-to-school shopping season. That's good news for the sluggish economy. Wall Street is going to keep a close eye on this report as well as we approach the crucial holiday shopping season. We'll track it all on CNN Money. Fred, back to you.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks so much, ladies. Remember you can get your financial fix every day on cnnmoney.com. All right, look at the top stories right now. President Barack Obama's jobs bill headed for the U.S. Senate. Lawmakers expected to vote on the measure this week. The $447 billion jobs plan includes tax cuts, infrastructure spending and job training assistance. It would be funded by a new tax on millionaires.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel say they will work together to recapitalize European banks. Their meeting came on the same day that France, Belgium and Luxemburg agreed on a plan to rescue Dexia, a troubled Franco Belgian bank.
The "Occupy Wall Street" protests are in their 23rd day. The movement started in New York and has spread across the country. Among other things, demonstrators are angry over social and financial inequalities and what they say is corporate greed.
I'll be back in one hour from now. We will do something special today. We'll spend the entire hour of the 4:00 Eastern hour letting you hear from the 2012 contenders for the White House like Herman Cain who says the "Occupy" protests are an intentional distraction.
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CAIN: I happen to believe that this is an intentional distraction to create in the media and minds of the American people so they won't focus on the failed policies of this administration.
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WHITFIELD: Hear from the candidates running for the White House unedited, uninterrupted and at length, that's ahead 4:00 Eastern Time right here in the CNN NEWSROOM. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. "YOUR MONEY" starts right now.
