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Rape & Murder Funded By Cell Phones; Conrad Murray's Team Backtracks; Obama Hosts South Korea's President; Chapter 9 Raises Questions In Harrisburg; Defense Secretary Warns Against Cuts; Blackberry Restores Global Service; Today's Rock Stars

Aired October 13, 2011 - 12:59   ET

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

RANDI KAYE, CNN ANCHOR: And you've been listening there to President Obama, along with President Lee from South Korea. Hello, everyone. I'm Randi Kaye, picking it up from here from Fredricka Whitfield.

This comes -- this moment there at the White House comes just a day after Congress has approved this free trade agreement between the two nations. This was a very, very important meeting for the two of them. Obama has hailed President Lee as a partner and a good friend and he mentioned all of that at this welcoming ceremony.

Congress, as you may know, voted yesterday on this bipartisan basis to approve free trade agreements with Columbia, Panama and South Korea. And this visit really is meant to highlight what they consider a very strong alliance. The global partnership and deep economic ties between the U.S. and the Republic of Korea.

Lee had said that he -- President Lee had said that he paid respects at the Korean War Memorial, shortly before this ceremony, remembering the 37,000 U.S. service members who were killed in that Korean War.

And so, they will hold these bilateral meetings, like you just saw taking place there at the White House, with the president. He will also be attending a state dinner. Our Jessica Yellin was there in that room as they spoke, and I'd like to see with a she thinks.

Jessica, if you're with us and you can hear me, let me know what you think the highlight was there of this appearance between the two presidents.

JESSICA YELLIN, CNN SENIOR WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Well, the president -- I asked the president a question about both Iran and about the economy and he, you know, refused, Randi, to say how high up in the Iranian government knowledge of this alleged Iranian terror plot may have gone.

You know, there are a lot of questions about whether the supreme leader and the nation's president had knowledge. But the president did say that no matter how high up it went, the entire Iranian government needs to be held accountable, and that they have a very solid case, and that they are gathering support for our allied nations to tighten sanctions and pressure on Iran. And so, these were the president's first comments himself on this alleged plot. Additionally, the South Korean president in his own opening remarks addressed the plot and expressed his sympathies and alliance with the U.S. and Saudi Arabia on that.

And then the president got a little bit feisty when I asked him about the American Jobs Act. He released a campaign video yesterday saying that he's going to force Congress to take up individual pieces of the act, but Randi, he hasn't been able to force Congress to do even an up or down vote on the whole bill.

So, I asked if he's going to invite some of the leaders over to sit down and just negotiate for a compromise version and that's not what they're looking at here. What they're looking at is doing individual votes and holding members accountable. If they vote that down, they're going to have to be held accountable for each piece of that bill -- Randi.

KAYE: Yes, I noticed that the president cut you off from anymore follow-up questions, so you obviously --

YELLIN: I asked a few.

KAYE: -- you were obviously asking the right questions, Jessica. Thank you very much for that and for the update.

Well, we don't need to tell you that the economy is in the tank. Millions of you are barely scraping by to pay your bills while debts pile up. And it's not just families going broke, it is major cities. Increasingly cash-strapped, overwhelmed with debt, and resorting to bankruptcy.

Harrisburg, the state capital of Pennsylvania, is the latest city to face bankruptcy. Its city council voted last night to go forward and file. Some cities are so desperate to save money, they're taking extreme measures to cut costs.

In Topeka, Kansas, the city council voted not make domestic violence a crime. The district attorney refused to prosecute domestic violence cases all because of budget cuts and a tiff over who would foot the bill. Luckily, the D.A. backed off.

But that gives you an idea of just how grave the financial reality is for many cities and how deep their budget cuts go. Alison Kosik hit the road for Harrisburg to see how bad things really are there.

Alison, you've had a chance to look around and talk to some folks. I mean, we're talking about the state capital here of Pennsylvania. How did this happen to Harrisburg?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Well, here's what's interesting, Randi, about Harrisburg. You know, you'd think that, you know, cities would go ahead and file for bankruptcy because of hardships, because of the economy, because of the recession, but that's really not the case here. In Harrisburg, what we found is that the debt load that this city is carrying is because of its trash incinerator. It's carrying $310 million of debt just from the trash incinerator. And then, if you total the rest of the debt with it, another $458 million. But it's this trash incinerator that really was the tipping point. Many people are saying that it burned more cash than it did trash and they're calling it a money pit.

Essentially, this incinerator was thought to be a revenue source at one point because not only would it burn trash, it would create energy but that really fizzled out. That really didn't happen. It wound up being a big flop. In addition, the city went ahead and tried up -- and went ahead and updated it, so they put even more borrowed money into this facility but for nothing, obviously not helping with the city council voting to go ahead and file for bankruptcy.

KAYE: Have you had had a chance to talk to some of the residents? I mean, I would imagine that they are concerned about maybe losing services or even higher fees in some places.

KOSIK: Yes, they are concerned. I did talk with several residents. You know, the big concern that we're seeing is taxes and sort of that shared responsibility, that shared pain that goes along with a bankruptcy filing. You know, there are some officials talking about possible property tax hike anywhere from 9 to 20 percent.

The "Wall Street Journal" is reporting that some Harrisburg officials are floating an idea to have commuters actually pay a tax before they enter the city of Harrisburg. None of it's really going over well with residents. You know, no one likes to be taxed more, no one likes to be nickel and dimed, but this is exactly what may happen just so Harrisburg can get its balance sheet back on track -- Randi.

KAYE: Alison Kosik on the ground in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for us. Alison, thank you.

Defense secretary Leon Panetta is on Capitol Hill today. He's warning lawmakers of the dire consequences of deep cuts in military spending, but Panetta is also promising to improve accountability in the Pentagon. He says he has directed his department to cut in half the time it takes to achieve what Panetta calls audit readiness, and he says the Defense Department will be ready for a full budget audit in 2014. Until now, the Pentagon has never been subjected to a complete examination of its spending.

The maker of Blackberry says service is now fully restored around the world and the president and founder of parent company research in motion says he's sorry for the firm's worst outage ever.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MIKE LAZARIDIS, FOUND AND PRESIDENT, RESEARCH IN MOTION: Since launching Blackberry in 1999, it's been my goal to provide reliable real-time communications around the world. We did not deliver on that goal this week, not even close. I apologize for the service outages this week. We've let many of you down. But let me assure you that we are working round-the-clock to fix this.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: The online service failures began Monday in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, by Wednesday they had spread to the U.S. and Canada.

With massive budget cuts and huge amounts of debt, bankruptcy is increasingly becoming a way out for cities. But what does that mean for you if it happens where you live, perhaps? We'll find out next.

But first, a seventh-grader from Frisco, Texas is alive today thanks to two fast-thinking teachers. When Kylee Shea collapsed in the hallway at school, two gym teachers jumped in to help. Brent Reese immediately started CPR and Kristin grabbed the school's portable defibrillator and shocked her heart. She came back to life. Doctors say if they had waited just 30 more seconds Kylee probably would have died. For your quick thinking, Kristin and Brent, you are today's rock stars.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: The battle brewing in Pennsylvania's capitol over a Chapter 9 bankruptcy shows you just how bad some cities are struggling financially. Harrisburg is just the latest to file for Chapter 9 this year. It is the largest municipality to declare bankruptcy since Vallejo, California three years ago, which is why we are putting in some face time today with a bankruptcy specialist, James Spiotto, who has been tracking all of this, and joins us now live from Denver.

James, thanks for coming on the show. We want to discuss this because it's happening to so many cities around the country. You've pointed out, though, that Harrisburg is the first capital to file bankruptcy in 40 years. So, I would imagine that you think this is a pretty big deal.

JAMES SPIOTTO, ATTORNEY, CHAPMAN AND CUTLER: It certainly is an interesting lesson. It's unusual to see a Chapter 9 filing in the first place. There's only been 248 since 1980. And so, it's an unusual event, but at the same time, it's unusual for a capital because the traditional way of solving this problem is the state working with the municipality, providing some aid, possibly moving some services to other governmental entities to lower costs, and finding a solution as quickly as possible.

KAYE: And you said there have been nine bankruptcy filings overall this year which is on the high end, so is this a sign to you that more cities are struggling?

SPIOTTO: Well, in a down economy, you have lower tax revenues because less people are employed, there are less revenues, less sales, because of the economy downturn. But at the same time, it's a time where if there are problems, it's important that the state and the local municipalities work together to try to identify the problem early enough and find a solution.

I think one of the lessons vis-a-vis Harrisburg is if the solution doesn't come about quickly enough, people get frustrated, they think of other alternatives, and we raise the question of whether or not the old dynamic of the state helping the municipality and the municipality taking the right actions to solve the problem won't work, and we go to the drastic step of the Chapter 9.

KAYE: Yes. Well, anyone who's from Harrisburg is probably getting this news and wondering, well, what's going to happen? What does this mean for me? So, what might residents expect, you know, in terms of services or even higher fees in some areas?

SPIOTTO: Well, Chapter 9 is not the best of all worlds. Chapter 9 is time consuming, expensive and complicated. When you go into a Chapter 9, you don't get more revenues. That Chapter 9 doesn't provide additional revenues. In fact, in the case of Harrisburg, given the state statutes, they'll lose some aid they presently have. Chapter 9 also means that you have to sort of balance your budget, you're going to have to cut services generally, It will mean reduced services, It means increased costs and it means creditor relations, some of whom you care about significantly, may be changed.

KAYE: Yes. And then, you --

SPIOTTO: So, it is a very difficult situation.

KAYE: And then, you see a community like Vallejo, California which went through bankruptcy three years ago and is still trying to recover. So, what are your hopes for a community like Harrisburg?

SPIOTTO: The hopes for Harrisburg -- because one of the things -- even though they filed, there will be a question raised whether they were authorized to file, whether it is permitted. Since 1980, there have been 80 out of the 258 Chapter 9s filed, 80 have been dismissed without getting a plan, without proceeding. And so, this one out of three drop-out rate, it may be that Harrisburg will find a better way working with the state, solve their problem quickly, rather than the more time consuming and costly way in bankruptcy which also threatens their ability to go into the market again and borrow money at a low cost and with unlimited access.

KAYE: Yes. It's a tough situation, no doubt. James Spiotto, thank you for your expertise today, appreciate that.

Up next, how your cell phone likely helped finance the death of five million people. Don't go anywhere.

But first, here's a look at the stories you're watching on CNN.com.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Imagine a place where women are regularly raped, children are forced to fight as soldiers and 5 million people have been killed. Now imagine the cell phone in your pocket is part of the problem.

This is a reality in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Armed groups fighting the deadliest war since World War II are funded through the trade of high-value minerals that tech companies use in our phones, video games and laptop computers. You've heard of blood diamonds. These are conflict minerals. And it needs to change.

Frank Poulsen, the director of the new documentary "Blood in the Mobile," joins me now.

You spent three years documenting this under covered story and you say that the number of people dying in the Congo every three months is equal to the number of people killed in Haiti's earthquake, which really puts the problem in perspective. So, first, what did you see when you went down into these mines where this material is gathered?

FRANK POULSEN, DIRECTOR, "BLOOD IN THE MOBILE" (via telephone): Well, I mean this place is a hell on earth. It's deep in the jungle and it's controlled by warlords who are (INAUDIBLE). They work for days on the ground. Several hundred meters underground. And they would (INAUDIBLE) down there for several days and dig out these minerals that we use to create mobile phones.

KAYE: And how many hours are these children down there and do they even understand that they're caught in the middle of this?

POULSEN: Well, I mean, they (INAUDIBLE) the situation what is going on and they don't have any opportunities but to stay there. Also because they are, in many cases, trapped there and can't leave the place, even though if they want to. And in many cases they had a better (INAUDIBLE) who are just poor peasants (ph) in the countryside.

KAYE: We're looking at some of the video from your film, "Blood in the Mobile." And I want to ask you, you know, what are they mining for? What is this material and how does it end up in our cell phones?

POULSEN: Several different minerals. It's (INAUDIBLE) used to make the small (INAUDIBLE) circuit boards. It's a mineral called cobalt (ph) that's used to make the batteries. It's a mineral called tungsten (ph) that you use to make the phone vibrate. And it's something called casiderite (ph), which you use to also make these electronic parts (ph) very small.

KAYE: And how much money do the armed groups that are behind this, how much money do they generate?

POULSEN: It's millions of dollars every month. But it's very hard to find out because it -- all this is doing is being done illegally. And this is really the problem is that the mobile -- the electronic industry is not taking their responsibility in this case and cleaning up their act and trying to find out where they -- they don't even know that their own supply chain and this is the problem. The companies are saying that they are socially responsible and then they have a problem like this. And they have been knowing about this for 10 years without really doing anything about it. And this is why we've been in Europe so (INAUDIBLE) in the U.S. because you have been making a law against this in the Dodd-Frank Act, which was passed a year ago. And even before this law has really been implemented, this is -- they're starting to have an effect on the mobile industry. And we are hoping to get the same kind of legislation through the EU system.

KAYE: So just very quickly, is there anything consumers can do then? POULSEN: I think there are several things we can do. I mean I didn't know about these conflict minerals before somebody told me. So tell your friend. Use our Facebook page, it's facebook.com/bloodinthemobile, to tell your friends about this. The second thing is to ask questions. When you go and buy electronics, ask if you can get one which is conflict mineral free. The third thing is to contact your representative on Capitol Hill and ask him to look into this because this is something that concerns you. And fourth thing would be to join the organization Raise Hope for Congo, which is part of the Enough Project, which is really the one tracking on pulling this issue on the agenda in the U.S.

KAYE: Frank Poulsen, appreciate your time and appreciate what you're doing to help those folks there in the Congo. Thank you very much.

And if you're interesting in watching Frank's documentary, you can check it out at www.bloodinthemobile.org.

Now take a look at this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ALON STEINBERG, CARDIOLOGIST: What he did do also, which I think is inexcusable, he started doing chest compressions. As I told you, there was a blood pressure. When there's a blood pressure, this is a respiratory arrest. This is not a cardiac arrest.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Other doctors discrediting Dr. Conrad Murray's actions after Michael Jackson slipped into a coma. The latest from the death trial, next.

But before the break, we turned back the clocks for this shame in history. A war begins. On this day in 1943, war-torn Italy declared war on Germany. It was just over a month after surrendering to the allied powers and promising their cooperation in the fight against their former ally. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Dr. Conrad Murray comes under attack from fellow doctors testifying for the prosecution. They said Murray repeatedly used poor judgment and that Jackson, Michael Jackson, could have been saved. "In Session" host Ryan Smith, from our sister network TruTV, joins us now live from Los Angeles.

Hi there, Ryan.

Let's talk about the defense changing their story. Now saying that Michael Jackson didn't swallow the Propofol, instead now saying that he used a syringe to inject it through a catheter in his leg? I mean how damaging do you think this switch-a-roo is going to be?

RYAN SMITH, HOST, "IN SESSION" ON TRUTV: That's right, Randi. And I think it's going to be a problem for the defense. You know, this is late in the game and this all came about because the prosecution wants to introduce a study where six people in Chile drank Propofol but didn't die. Nothing happened to them. And that's when the defense said, well, we're not planning on offering that as a potential theory.

Now it's interesting because we thought that was going to be one of their theories and they didn't say that Michael Jackson drank Propofol in their opening statements. So they left the door open to drop it. But what that might do to their case, well, it could reduce the avenues of reasonable doubt that they have. They had always said that maybe it was possible that Michael Jackson gave himself that shot of Propofol. They've also said that he took a bunch of Lorazepam pills and all of those things could have caused his death. So it's not something that might damage every part of their case, but it certainly limits the avenues of reasonable doubt.

KAYE: And let's talk about this doctor who was testifying yesterday for the prosecution who said that Michael Jackson may very well be alive if it weren't for the actions of Dr. Murray. I have to share this one statement from Dr. Steinberg, which I'm sure you're aware of. "It was like leaving a baby sleeping on your kitchen counter." That is a pretty strong statement.

SMITH: Oh, my goodness, it is. And, you know, all the talk of this trial right now is Dr. Alon Steinberg, because he's a cardiologist, just like Dr. Murray. And he talked, in very plain terms, about all the different ways in which Dr. Murray failed his famous patient. So, you know, you talk about not calling 911. You talk about administering Propofol at home. And when he made that baby example, he said, you know, you leave a patient with this kind of contraption, you leave the room, that's abandonment essentially and you wouldn't abandon a baby on top of a countertop because that baby could hurt itself. Something could happen.

KAYE: Yes.

SMITH: That's what he was trying to point out.

And, Randi, what it really think it did is, it brought home all the prosecution's points. Is what this case is all about. It's a standard of care case. It's not necessarily about whether Michael Jackson did something to himself. It's that Dr. Murray failed in providing the proper standard of care and that created a substantial risk of death to Michael Jackson. And so, therefore, his recklessness caused Michael Jackson's death. And that's what they really tried to hammer home yesterday.

KAYE: Yes. So do you think the prosecution will rest maybe today or tomorrow?

SMITH: I think they very well could. And they're going to wrap it up with their own Propofol expert. And that becomes critical because that Propofol, that's the agent of death. So they want people to know that when you have this kind of exposure to Propofol, it could lead to death. And that's going to be a big part of their case.

He's expected, that witness is expected to take the stand today, but it may actually continue over into Monday. And then the defense gets started. But right now I think one of the big questions is, will we see Dr. Murray testify, because Dr. Steinberg's testimony was all about what Dr. Murray said and the analysis of that. So that kind of paints Dr. Murray into a corner.

KAYE: Well, Ryan, I'm glad we were able to steal you for a few minutes. I've seen you out there in L.A. and I know you're busy running around trying to cover all this. So I'm glad we had you on the show. Thank you so much.

SMITH: Sure thing, Randi.

KAYE: Herman Cain vaulting to the top of the polls, taking the lead over Mitt Romney. But is Cain able? That is "Fair Game" next.

But first, let's take a look at some of that new polling. Herman Cain is currently leading the NBC/"Wall Street Journal" poll with 27 percent of Republicans favoring him. He's followed by Mitt Romney, who is within the survey sampling error at 23 percent. But do you know who was leading in the polls at this time in the last election cycle? Stick around. We'll have the answer for you.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Before the break, we asked who was leading in the polls at this time in the last election cycle? Take a look at this CNN polling back from 2007.

Four years ago, Rudy Giuliani was on top with 27 percent of registered Republicans in his corner. That was good for an 8 percentage point lead over the second-place finisher, Fred Thompson. The eventual nominee, though, neither one of those guys, John McCain, and he was third.

Chances are you never heard of Herman Cain until recently, but now he's the latest hot candidate running for the GOP nomination. How hot? Well, take a look at this CNN poll of polls. This poll averages the four national polls taken entirely in October. Cain has moved up 3 percentage points while Governor Rick Perry has continued to drop, but the fair question to ask is this.

Does Herman Cain, a man that many people claim is winning the GOP debates, have the money and the staffing to make the most of his rising poll numbers? Can he really win the GOP nomination?

Doug Heye is a Republican strategist. Ed Espinoza is a Democratic political consultant.

Welcome to both of you.

Ed, let me start with you here. Why is Herman Cain leading in the polls? What's the attraction?

ED ESPINOZA, DEMOCRATIC CONSULTANT: Well, he's exciting. He's the flavor of the month. But, most importantly, he's not Mitt Romney. And this is a problem that Romney has encountered for a while. The person that the Republican electorate knows the best is the guy they tend to like the least. He's plateaued in the mid-20s right now. Herman Cain is exciting, he's refreshing, he talks about something new. And like we have been saying he is the flavor of the month.

KAYE: Doug, what do you think? Does this have anything to do with his 999 tax plan or the fact that he's never held office?

DOUG HEYE, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: Well, I think the 999 tax plan is something that really has drawn a lot of interest.

But what also makes any candidate who wins the nomination viable in November is the other nine. And that's the 9 percent unemployment that this country faces. But ultimately whether or not Herman Cain can win or not win goes to what you addressed earlier and that's money and that's organization. That's especially important in key primary states and caucus states like Iowa and New Hampshire.

In a primary, you vote to make your voice heard. In a caucus, a caucus-goer shows up to make their presence felt. That takes a greater commitment and it takes a greater organization. That's something that Herman Cain has to build and has to build quickly and the time frame is slimming despite the best efforts of the Republican National Committee to draw some sanity into this primary process.

KAYE: When you look at his polling numbers and you see Rick Perry dropping, Ed, who does -- does the surge hurt Perry or what do you think?

ESPINOZA: Well, it hurts Perry right now. But remember one month ago we were asking if this was a two-man race between Perry and Romney. Now we're asking -- now a lot of people are asking the same question between Cain and Romney.

Three months in politics, just like sports it is an eternity. A lot can happen. What Doug said about Iowa is right. Iowa is the best chance for a Republican to challenge Romney because if he comes in and he wins Iowa and he wins New Hampshire, he's going to be hard to stop.

But to win Iowa, you have got to have organization. We're not clear on what Herman Cain's organization is right now and he will be tested over the next month.

KAYE: And a lot of people, Doug, aren't even clear what his 999 plan is right now. Do you think there's been enough scrutiny on this? Do you expect that we will see more and then what might that mean for him?

HEYE: We will certainly see more. When candidates are in low positions in the polls, in the low double digits, we don't hear a lot about them. Their plans aren't really scrutinized and studied. For instance, Jon Huntsman's campaign hasn't really drawn the interest of the national media the way that some might have expected.

We will certainly see a lot more interest in this and a lot more scrutiny. And then we will see if Michele Bachmann is right, if the devil's in the details. But for Herman Cain, it is something you will hear him hit on the stump speech again and again and again, 999.

But I'll tell you, having spoken to some people who are involved with of the other campaigns, one of them said to me that 999 plan for them is fine, fine, fine because they think they can beat Cain on this issue.

KAYE: Oh, boy, it's going to get interesting.

All right, guys, Ed Espinoza, Doug Heye, thank you both. That is "Fair Game."

HEYE: Thank you.

KAYE: And remember, the Western Republican presidential debate next Tuesday, October 18, 8:00 Eastern. You will find it right here on CNN.

A 9.0 earthquake struck there on March 11 of this year. The quake's spurred a tsunami with 30-foot waves. Now there is a growing problem in one city. Can you name the country? We will take there with an update next in "Globe Trekking."

But, first, a look at one of "Money" magazine's top jobs in America.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

NARRATOR: Parents looking for the perfect career might want to try physical therapy. "Money" magazine ranks this as a top job for moms because it has great flexibility and you can average about $76,000 a year.

Physical therapists say their job is rewarding, but it isn't easy to break into. Entry-level candidates are now required to have a Ph.D.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: Seven months after a tsunami badly damaged a key nuclear plant in Japan, high levels of radiation have been detected in a neighborhood in central Tokyo. Local officials have closed off the affected area.

The mayor says radiation levels were higher there than in the evacuation area surrounding the tsunami-damaged Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant. He said crews tracked the suspected source to glass bottles found in a cardboard box in the basement of a house. Officials say there is no immediate health hazard.

President Obama says Iran must answer to the international community for an alleged plot to assassinate the Saudi Arabian ambassador to the U.S. He made the comments at a White House news conference a short time ago with visiting South Korean President Lee. Mr. Obama says there has to be -- quote -- "accountability," even if top-level Iranian government officials had no operational knowledge of the would-be attack.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the U.S. State Department says the U.S. has been in direct contact with Iran about the alleged plot.

The bullets are still flying in the hometown of ousted Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi. Forces loyal to the new Libyan government are meeting resistance as they stage a final advance into the last areas still controlled by pro-Gadhafi fighters. There had been reports that rebel forces had arrested one of Gadhafi's sons, but that report remains unconfirmed. The younger Gadhafi had been directing operations in Sirte.

Former IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn is apparently off the hook again in a rape case. A French journalist had accused him of trying to sexually assault her in 2003. French prosecutors say there was a lack of sufficient evidence to file charges. You may remember back in August, prosecutors in New York dismissed sexual assault charges against Strauss-Kahn in a case involving a hotel maid.

A race against time in Bangkok, Thailand. Crews are using sandbags and mud to shore up flood walls protecting parts of the capital city. The rising waters have killed at least 281 people across that country. Two others are missing. The widespread flooding is impacting 500,000 square miles of Thailand and nearby Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos. Thai officials say overall damages from the floods could top $2 billion.

Schools are supposed to be safe places for our kids, but one school district is under fire for not protecting students against bullies. Anderson Cooper has that story next.

But, first, have you heard this one? What did one BlackBerry say to the other BlackBerry? Nothing. Comments like that are swirling the Internet after BlackBerry's largest global outage ever. The company is sorry and service is back, but this is not new territory for the little handheld window to the world.

Research In Motion, who makes the BlackBerry, has struggled with new phones, a tablet, and their shares are at a five-year low. That's why I say, BlackBerry, your 15 minutes are up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

KAYE: All this week, we're taking an in-depth look at America's bullying crisis.

In Anoka-Hennepin, Minnesota's largest school district, seven students have taken their own lives in less than two years. And the school district is facing a federal investigation and lawsuit from two advocacy groups and several students. The students suing say the district's policy of barring teachers from talking about homosexuality jeopardizes their safety at school. They want the policy changed.

The school district declined to speak to CNN, citing the ongoing litigation, but did defend the policy to us in April.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) DENNIS CARLSON, SUPERINTENDENT, ANOKA-HENNEPIN SCHOOL DISTRICT: All the students come with parents in this community, and parents have a wide range of beliefs. We serve them all.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAYE: Anderson Cooper sat down with four of the students suing that school.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON COOPER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Do you all get called names when you walk through the halls?

STUDENT: Yes.

STUDENT: Yes.

COOPER: What sort of names?

KYLE, STUDENT IN ANOKA-HENNEPIN SCHOOL DISTRICT: Faggot, dyke, dumbass, ugly ass bitch.

COOPER: People actually say that to your face?

BRITTANY, STUDENT IN ANOKA-HENNEPIN SCHOOL DISTRICT: Say it to your face or under their breath when you're walking by.

COOPER: What is this like?

BRITTANY: Horrifying.

COOPER: How about for you?

DAMIAN, STUDENT IN ANOKA-HENNEPIN SCHOOL DISTRICT: Yes. It's -- it makes me feel lonely, like there's no one out there like me that's getting bullied. They call me faggot, fag boy, Gaymian, gay boy, gay. And it's frustrating and sad at the same time.

COOPER: You're not gay. Your two dads are. And you're involved in gymnastics.

DAMIAN: Yes.

COOPER: And is it because your dads are gay or because of the sport you do? Why do people pick on you?

DAMIAN: It's for both.

COOPER: Do you think adults know how tough it is for you at school?

DAMIAN: No.

COOPER: Is it just in the school or is it around the clock, online?

BRITTANY: Online, phones. Even some people will even come to your house. It's -- you can't escape from it.

KYLE: It's inevitable. You know, everywhere you go, there's going to be someone who picks on you. You know, that's life. But no one should be called a fag or being pushed or shoved and not have a consequence.

COOPER: You have been pushed and shoved?

KYLE: Mm-hmm.

COOPER: Tell me about that.

KYLE: I was walking down the hall. And you get shoved. And you feel like they just think you're piece a garbage that they can just throw away. And it makes you feel powerless, weak and defenseless. And then when you tell a teacher, they won't stop it.

COOPER: Have all of you think you have had grades suffer because of this?

STUDENT: Yes.

STUDENT: Yes.

STUDENT: Yes.

COOPER: From what you are describing, it's like the school part of school, the actual learning part, is secondary to just getting through each day.

BRITTANY: It's more like another life you're living.

COOPER: Like another life?

BRITTANY: It's kind of like you're a secret to yourself. You have to plan how you're going to get to the next class without seeing that person, or if you're going to carry your books higher so you don't have to run into anybody, or if you're going to look down, or am I going to smile, am I going to walk away or am I going to go to the counselor? Basically trying to do a step-by-step plan, but you can't focus at all.

COOPER: Can you go to a teacher and say, look, they're calling me gay, they're calling me the F-word, they're calling me all these things about my sexuality or my perceived sexuality? What does the teacher say?

BRITTANY: Basically nothing.

They tell you to either don't say that word or don't talk that way or...

COOPER: They actually say don't talk that way?

BRITTANY: Yes. It's like don't use that language or you're just hearing things. (CROSSTALK)

COOPER: The language -- just to be clear, the language is using the word gay.

BRITTANY: Gay, faggot, homo. I have been called (EXPLETIVE DELETED). I have even called names that I'm even ashamed to say. So...

COOPER: So, why is it so important for to you see this school policy change?

DAMIAN: I want to be able to be myself in the hallways. I want to be able to walk through the hallways and not get called gay. I want to be able to walk with my friends without people shoving me in the hallways.

COOPER: Do you think this is based on the idea that there's something wrong with being gay?

BRITTANY: Yes.

STUDENT: Yes.

BRITTANY: The neutrality policy we need gone. And how many people are we going to have to lose for them to realize that something that actually matters and means something to not just kids, but parents and families that are losing or kids that are alone out there? It's scary if you look at the big picture of it, but it is reality.

COOPER: Well you're very, very brave. And I think you all are. Thank you very much.

BRITTANY: Thank you.

STUDENT: Thank you.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

KAYE: A great conversation there. And it really is time for all of us to take a stand. Watch "A.C. 360" at 8:00 p.m. and 10:00 p.m. Eastern to learn more about America's bullying crisis.

Cheating on the SATs, a group of kids caught beating the system. The unfolding scandal next in "Street Level."

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KAYE: Now to Seal Beach, California and the brutal massacre at a hair salon. The horrific violence rocked the normally peaceful seaside community.

Thelma Gutierrez is following the developments right now for us from Los Angeles.

Thelma, bring us up to date. What's the latest there?

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Randi, I can tell that you very soon the police there in Seal Beach will be releasing the names of all eight people who were killed in yesterday's massacre.

Now, it happened in Seal Beach, Randi. It is a very small community. It is the kind of place where people know one another and many of the people knew the victims, including the salon owner who had had that shop for 20 years.

Grief counselors are being brought in today to help people cope with this terrible situation. Now, this is the deadliest massacre in Orange County's history. Police say that yesterday afternoon, they received calls that shots were being fired from inside Salon Meritage. When they arrived they discovered one man and five women dead.

They also transported three people to the hospital. Two died. And the sole survivor, a woman, remains in critical condition. Officers say that when they went in, it appeared that this place was full and that many of those victims were ducking for cover.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SGT. STEVE BOWLES, SEAL BEACH POLICE DEPARTMENT: As you all know, Seal Beach is a small, safe community. We don't experience these things, ever. It's been a long time since we have had something -- we don't very often have homicides and especially anything of this magnitude.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUTIERREZ: Now, investigators say the suspect, 42-year-old Scott De Kraai, was taken into custody about a half-mile from the shop. It appeared that he was trying to flee at the time right after that shooting.

De Kraai and his ex-wife Michelle had been in a very bitter custody battle. And they say that they had been battling over custody of their 7-year-old son. Now, Michelle De Kraai worked at the salon. She was killed there at the scene. Clients had said very lately -- they had told reporters that she had appeared very stressed out.

And in fact, one friend, one neighbor, told KTLA here in Los Angeles that Michelle De Kraai had taken out a restraining order against her husband just a day before the deadly rampage -- Randi.

KAYE: Wow. That's terrible to hear. And this guy was in full body armor, right? And then somehow he managed to get away and get back home?

GUTIERREZ: Yes. As a matter of fact, there were shots of his body armor right outside on top of the vehicle, Randi, right after that rampage. He was caught about a half-mile away. And police still are not releasing the kind of weapon that he used. But people are guessing that it was a high-caliber weapon.

KAYE: Thelma Gutierrez there in Los Angeles with the very latest on that horrible story -- Thelma, thank you so much.

Now let's talk some politics with our friend Paul Steinhauser. He is at the political desk in Washington watching the musical chairs that continue on the primary calendar.

Hi, Paul.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Hey, Randi.

Here we go again. We were talking about this last week. And now New Hampshire threatening to put their primary in December. Boy, I don't think anybody wants this. But let's go to the calendar and I will explain what is going on here. Take a look at this. January is already getting very crowded and here's what's going on. Look at Nevada right there. Remember it was about a week ago they said they were going to put their caucus on the 14th of January.

Now Iowa, they say they're probably going to be on the 3rd. So New Hampshire, by law, the New Hampshire primary which is the first in the nation, by law, they have to be seven days in front of anything else. Well, they're kind of getting boxed in by Iowa and Nevada. So New Hampshire's secretary of state says Nevada, please, move back a couple days. If not, they may, may put their primary in December, which would probably not be very -- make anybody happy, the candidates, the voters, you, me, anybody -- Randi.

KAYE: Yes. We also talked not too long ago about the president and looking -- he is certainly looking to raise a whole lot of money. How is he doing on that, by the way?

STEINHAUSER: They announced this morning some big bucks. Yes, the president's reelection campaign out in Chicago announced they raised with them and the Democratic National Committee combined about $70 million in the third quarter of fund-raising. That's July, August and September.

Now that's down from what they raised in the second quarter. They raised a record $86 million in the second quarter. But this is more than they said they would raise in the third. So maybe it was a little expectations game. Randi, why does this matter? Why do we spend so much time looking at campaign cash? Here's why. All that money -- and it's a lot -- that will buy TV commercial time and get- out-the-vote efforts next year when the president really starts running for reelection.

And when you break it down, right now, it looks like the president has got more money than all the Republican candidates combine. That's why we keep track of this stuff, Randi.

KAYE: I'm glad you're keeping track, because I have lost track already.

(LAUGHTER)

KAYE: All right, Paul Steinhauser, thank you so much. Nice to see you as always. And just a reminder. Tuesday night, live right here on CNN, the Republican candidates for president gather in Las Vegas to debate the issues and sway voters, at least try to. The Western Republican presidential debate right here CNN handled by our own Anderson Cooper Tuesday night at 8:00 p.m. Eastern.

That will do it for me, everyone. Have a great afternoon. I will hand it now over to Brooke Baldwin.

Hi, Brooke.