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Cain Denies Sexual Harassment; Cain, Romney Still Lead Polls; Millions Without Power After Storm; World Population at Seven Billion; Cain Speaks at D.C. Think Tank; From Snowy Tarmac, Pilot Pleads for Help; Romney's Mormonism, His Faith Journey; Cain Denies Sexual Harassment

Aired October 31, 2011 - 09:00   ET

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

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: It's the top of the hour now, 9:00 Eastern Tim. Welcome to more from the CNN NEWSROOM.

Republican candidate Herman Cain this morning, he sits atop several polls and straddles a potential powder keg. As he is preparing to deliver a speech at a Washington think tank. He faces new questions of sexual harassment.

According to Politico, two women filed complaints against him in the 1990s. And last night, the campaign issued a denial, but only after this awkward exchange with the reporter who broke the story.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Have you ever been accused, sir, of harassment?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last one, guys.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last question, last question.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Sir, have you? Yes or no? Have you ever been accused, sir, of sexual harassment? Have you, sir?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was the last question. Thanks. Thanks.

UNIDENTIFIED REPORTER: Have you, sir? Yes or no. Have you ever been accused of sexual harassment?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, Joe Johns has the details now, and Paul Steinhauser has the rest of the campaign fallout.

Joe, let's go ahead and start with you. Do you expect Cain to address this issue this morning?

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Well, a million-dollar question, you know? He is the center of attention right now. A lot of people are going to be watching him. He is appearing at the American Enterprise Institute giving a speech. So questions are going to follow Herman Cain about this for quite a while. And at some point he'll probably have to say more. We need to be as transparent as we can about this story. We don't know a lot about the allegations right now. In fact, all we do know is that Herman Cain is the center of attention. Not in a good way.

We've heard denials from his campaign. They call this rumors. Here's the quote. They say, among other things, that, "Dredging up thinly sourced allegations stemming from Mr. Cain's tenure as the chief executive officer at the National Restaurant Association in the 1990s, political trade press," they call them, "are now casting aspersions on his character, spreading rumors that never stood up to the facts since Washington establishment critics haven't had much luck in attacking Mr. Cain's ideas to fix a bad economy and create jobs, they're trying to attack him any way they can."

So that is sort of a non-denial denial there. Honestly, there's just a lot of questions. More questions than answers. Cain has been, he says, vaguely familiar with the allegations.

So the first question is whether it's true that he's just vaguely familiar. The second question is pretty much about a nondisclosure agreement we're hearing about. This is the type of agreement all parties to an allegation sign in order to keep any of the information from going public.

Where is the pressure point on that? Who signed the nondisclosure agreement? And now that Herman Cain is running for president, would everybody who signed that nondisclosure agreement give their consent to lift it so we can get at the truth?

A lot of questions, Kyra, and we'll certainly be looking for Herman Cain to issue his own full and complete denial if all of this is simply not true.

PHILLIPS: Sure. And just to reiterate, he is going to be speaking live any moment now. We will take that live.

But, Joe, you know, through your sources, you've been on this beat a long time. Do you think right now that there really is enough here to cause him problems in this campaign?

JOHNS: You know, it's very difficult to say. But you know as well as I do, Kyra, the arc of these stories is, you have an allegation out there, and you don't have a name associated with it or a lot of names, the first thing you look for is for the individual who made the allegation to come forward and talk about it.

And if that individual does not come forward, it's very difficult to move the story forward. So that's the first thing. Let's see who's going to come out and talk.

PHILLIPS: All right. And we're standing by for that. We'll take it live as soon as it happens.

Joe, thanks so much. Meanwhile, a CNN poling -- another new poll shows that Herman Cain is still at the top in Iowa along with Mitt Romney

Our deputy political director Paul Steinhauser with more of the story behind those numbers. And it's going to be interesting to see if indeed those numbers are impacted by these allegations coming forward -- Paul.

PAUL STEINHAUSER, CNN DEPUTY POLITICAL DIRECTOR: Exactly, Kyra. Both these polls conducted obviously before the Politico story.

We're just over two months away from the first votes in Iowa. Take a look at this. A "Des Moines Register" survey of Republicans who are likely to vote on those GOP caucuses on January 3rd. Look who's at the top there, Herman Cain and Mitt Romney. Basically a dead heat, 23 percent for the former Godfather's Pizza CEO, and 22 percent for Romney, the former Massachusetts governor who's making his second bid for the White House.

Ron Paul, the congressman from Texas, at 12 percent. Everybody else in single digits.

Let's go take a look at a CNN/"TIME"/ORC poll that came out middle of last week. And basically the same story. Romney and Cain, dead even just about at the top there.

You know, Kyra, as Herman Cain has risen in the polls, remember, a dramatic rise, national polls and state polls, he's come under more scrutiny. His 9-9-9 plan which boosted him in the polls had been picked apart by his rivals for the GOP nomination. His -- every word he said on abortion has also come under scrutiny. And now this story from Politico -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. And let's follow up as we are monitoring this and monitoring this live event where he'll be speaking at this think tank very soon.

Rick Perry didn't stay out of the debates for very long.

STEINHAUSER: Yes. That was a storyline last week, right, would Perry go to all these upcoming debates? Remember his debate performances in those five debates in September and October did not help. It probably was one of the reasons why he went from the frontrunner in the polls much further down. And deteriorated in the polls.

But over the weekend, his campaign and the candidate himself saying that he will take part in the four debates -- yes, there are four debates scheduled next month. Go to the calendar and all. Quickly go through them.

On the 9th of November, you've got a CNBC debate in Michigan that's supposed to be entirely on the economy. You've got a CBS debate in South Carolina on the 12th. And a CNN debate on the 22nd here in Washington, D.C. Both of those debates supposed to focus on national security and foreign affairs. And finally, a CNN debate in Arizona, a state that's moved up its date on the primary calendar. That debate on November 30th.

So a crowded calendar for debates. Rick Perry says I will be there. And he also says, Kyra, that he hopes by -- when this is all over he's a better debater.

PHILLIPS: All right. We'll be following it. Thanks so much, Paul.

And once again this morning, Herman Cain facing new questions of sexual harassment. He will be speaking live at a Washington think tank any minute. As soon as he begins, we're going to monitor that to see if he responds to those allegations while he is making that speech.

All right. We're going to have your next political update in just about an hour. And a reminder, for all the latest political news, you can always go to our Web site, CNNPolitics.com.

Now across much of the northeast, the workweek begins under a blanket of snow and misery now. From Maryland -- Maryland, rather, to Maine, this freak snowstorm dumped more than two feet of snow in a lot of areas. And that shattered snowfall records for the entire month of October.

At least five deaths now blamed on that storm. More than 2.4 million homes and businesses are still without power, too. Those outages are scattered across the United States.

Convoys of power crews are streaming into the disaster areas to clear the fallen trees, restore the service. But a lot of people will still face several freezing nights before their electricity is back on.

CNN meteorologist Chad Myers is actually in York, Pennsylvania, for us this morning.

So, Chad, describe the scene there for us.

CHAD MYERS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: Well, this was a snowman Saturday afternoon. (INAUDIBLE) snowman, now it's more like a football. So we got warm yesterday. We were 50 degrees. Look at that ridgeline where the trees are. We don't have any snow on those trees over there.

We had snow, though, Friday night and Saturday. And even though it was only about an eight-hour snowfall, it's going to take many, many hours and even days for all of these power lines to get put back up.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MYERS: It's going to take a long time to get this back up, isn't it?

BARRY BAUMGARDNER, METROPOLITAN EDISON: Absolutely.

MYERS: How many days, do you think? BAUMGARDNER: I would say probably Wednesday.

MYERS: Wednesday.

BAUMGARDNER: Yes. We've got a lot of crews coming in from other areas, other states.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MYERS: Here's the deal. We were down to about 25 degrees here. If you're in a house without power, and you can't turn on the furnace without power, because the blower won't go, the natural gas won't turn on, you should not just use your gas grill or your gas oven because that will bring carbon monoxide into your home.

Another problem there, Kyra. So people are actually moving into hotels. All the hotels in the area were completely booked last night. I guess that's great for the hotels but bad for people that have now spent an extra $200 to $300 over the past couple of nights, that what they are telling me that was their Christmas fund in order to just stay warm.

So although things are moving again today, it's not like it should be with a couple of million people without power for a few more days. It's still going to cost those people more and more money -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We'll keep an eye on it, Chad. Thanks.

And people are occupying Wall Street this morning despite the rough weather. Check out these pictures. It was at (INAUDIBLE) Park in Manhattan. Demonstrators are now occupying tents. Before the storm, the city had removed propane tanks and generators from the park.

And the occupy crackdown is spreading. Take a look at Austin, Texas. Police arrested about 40 people just outside city hall.

And in Portland, Oregon, police arrested more than two dozen protesters when they didn't leave a city park after midnight. Authorities in both cities say the occupy groups are trespassing and violating city rules.

The occupy movement is one of the biggest social activist movements in years. But wouldn't you know it, there's also an economic side. A money-making side. Even among the movement's supporters.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If it's trademarkable, someone is going to trademark it. And why not me?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Our Poppy Harlow has that in the next hour of CNN NEWSROOM.

And the world may seem a bit larger today. That's because the U.N. says the world population will hit seven billion people.

Our Zain Verjee, she's not counting that high, but she is somewhat tracking that big number.

Let's talk about the headlines, talking about how symbolic this number is.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL ANCHOR: Yes, Kyra. You have to stop having more babies now because we are going to be --

(LAUGHTER)

VERJEE: We have enough. Seven billion. We passed that mark today. Let me show you some of the newspaper headlines here.

"Gulf News" in the United Arab Emirates puts the numbers out here. Here are all the zeros. Seven billion is its headline. And inside this paper there's an editorial that basically says that governments need to assess whether they have the right policies in place to improve the environment, protect natural resources, and have enough jobs for all these people.

Take a look at the "Dominion Post," this from New Zealand. It's actually kind of a cute headline with a cute picture. It says, "How many people will Boo share the beach with?" And that there, Kyra, is Boo. That's a baby temporarily named Boo actually. It's a story about the baby whose parents moved home to just escape all the people and wanted to bring her up in uncrowded waters near the surf. But it asks, what will Boo face in our world when she gets older?

Finally, look at "The National". This is also in the United Arab Emirates. Again, seven billion, the figure, and it talks about, Kyra, the population of the world is growing and different countries need to find solutions to different strains on power, food, water, and resources around the world. Because that's really the question. Are we going to run out of resources to support seven billion people -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Zain Verjee, it's really hard to kind of wrap your mind around that number. But I'm glad my twins got to contribute to it. And I'm stopping there, by the way.

Thanks, Zain.

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: All right. We want to remind you once again we are monitoring an event that's going to take place in Washington, D.C. at this think tank. Herman Cain going to be speaking live. And this comes just after he faces allegations of sexual harassment.

We're going to see if he's going to take any questions from those within the crowd. We're monitoring that, and we'll bring it to you live.

And JetBlue passengers spent eight hours stranded on the snowy tarmac with little food, little war, and backed up bathrooms.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They're filled. They're totally filled. Nobody can go in them anymore. You just have to hold it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: If you think passengers sound frustrated, just wait until you hear from the pilot.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tens of thousands, they started handing out the gear. Trying to get a good look. I believe his wife Elaine is --

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: And how does St. Louis honor its new world champs? Well, it brings out the Budweiser Clydesdales, of course. That's how they roll.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Live pictures of Republican candidate Herman Cain now. You're seeing live pictures here as they are getting technical things worked out there at the AEI think tank there in Washington.

As you know, we have been waiting to hear after he faces new questions about sexual harassment if indeed he's going to answer to that. Let's listen in.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Really wanted to scare people tonight. Who would you dress up as?

HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: It has to be one of my political opponents.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Let's say one of your Republican opponents. President Obama would be a lay-up on that one.

CAIN: That is a trick question.

(LAUGHTER)

CAIN: I believe I would go as Ron Paul.

(LAUGHTER)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK. So, Mr. Cain, you have talked a lot in the debates about how business experience is different from political experience -- and maybe preferable now. I wonder if you could talk a little bit about how you think your business experience has influenced the design of 9-9-9 and might even help you take something that's a pretty ambitious plan and help it become law.

CAIN: In business, you make sure that you identify the problem, and you identify the right problem.

And in business, you figure out a solution to the problem. You don't develop a half solution. You don't develop a safe solution. You develop the solution to the problem. Therein lies the difference between a businessman and a politician.

Let me use the example of Godfather's. When I went to Godfather's Pizza, its parent company, Pillsbury, had already decided that Godfather's was going to go bankrupt.

But I didn't get the memo. I didn't know it was supposed to go bankrupt. So, I did what I have always done, and what I will also do as president. I went and talked to the people closest to the problem. I talked to customers, people working in the restaurants, managers, franchisees, suppliers.

And they all gave me the same message, although it was in different words, which was Godfather's biggest problem was lack of focus. It was trying to do too much, too fast, with too little. I got it from the people closest to the problem.

And so, we put together our strategy based on eliminating three of the four crusts that they were trying to sell. That helped us to improve operations day-to-day. It made it easier for the people working in the restaurant to consistently provide the product. And we hammered on that strategy. So, we simplified.

Maybe the simplification is what helped lead to 9-9-9. So, we simplified the operation dramatically, which helped us.

Secondly, when we did introduce a new product because we had sagging sales, we needed to give customers and new customers a reason to come back to Godfather's. They had left us. So we developed a new product called "big value," because in addition to being the quality alternative in the segment, we knew that we needed a value proposition to attract some of the people, but we didn't want to damage our quality image or to get everybody to convert over. It worked.

So we developed a new product, simplified the operation, and that is how we solved the problem. And I happen to believe that that's what's missing in terms of how we go about things, that kind of thinking inspired 9-9-9.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: So were there any --

PHILLIPS: Herman Cain live, as he is having Q&A here at a Washington think tank, AEI, the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research. They were promoting this as a talk about his 9-9-9 tax plan.

But this morning, as you know, if you've been watching CNN, he faces new questions of sexual harassment. We are told by his campaign that he will address those allegations somewhere within this Q&A. So we are monitoring it for you. Please stay with us, and we will bring you the latest developments on that story.

Meanwhile, a Passenger Bill of Rights, well, no help for JetBlue passengers who spent eight hours stranded on a snowy tarmac with little food, little water, and backed up bathrooms. That's coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Let's look at some of the news from across the country.

We start in Ashton, Kansas. Searchers now are looking for three people missing after a grain elevator exploded. Three people were killed. That blast was so powerful that people could actually feel it three miles away. No word to why this happened, but investigators say the grain dust is extremely flammable.

Week six to the Michael Jackson death trial begins later this morning. Prosecutors will cross examine the anesthesiologist who's the star witness for the defense. Last week, he told the jury that Jackson probably died from drugs that he gave himself.

And the St. Louis Cardinals have begun their reign as the World Series champs. The city honored the team yesterday, with, of course, the famous Budweiser Clydesdales. The Cards won their 11th World Series title by beating the Texas Rangers in seven games.

More than 100 JetBlue passengers spent eight hours stranded on a frozen tarmac. They were headed from Ft. Lauderdale to Newark, usually an uneventful two-hour trip. But throw in a freak snowstorm, and it's a whole different story. The plane actually got diverted to Hartford, Connecticut. Passengers were trapped onboard with little food and water, backed up toilets, and very little fresh air.

But no one may have been more frustrated than the pilot. Take a listen to this.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JETBLUE 504 PILOT: Look, you know, we can't seem to get any help from our own company, I apologize for this, but is there any way you can get a tug and a tow bar out here to us and get us towed somewhere to a gate or something? I don't care. Take us anywhere.

TOWER: Do you need any paramedics or anything like that?

JETBLUE 504 PILOT: No. We got the fire truck over here. And I guess they have some medical background here. I'm not sure who all the players are back there, in the back here, but it looks like they got it covered. My priority right now is a tug and a tow bar. Just give me a welding shop. I'd be willing to make one myself.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: I think everybody loves to have a pilot like that.

Mary Schiavo is here, former inspector general to the Transportation Department, you now work for a law firm that sues airlines. You're joining us via Skype from Charleston.

You know, that's what we're talking about. That's the type of advocate we need. It's unbelievable. The pilot had to ask for a tug and a tow bar.

MARY SCHIAVO, FMR. INSPECTOR GENERAL, U.S. DOT: That is the kind of advocate we need. Unfortunately, in the aviation business, that kind of take charge attitude and advocacy is often not rewarded. And, unfortunately, in situations for these JetBlue passengers, that was really the only way they were going to get out of it.

And the government fines as you know will go right to the government. It's not like the new $3,000 to $5,000 per person fines will help these poor people who were stranded. But JetBlue will get fined, without a doubt.

PHILLIPS: OK. Well, what should have happened? Immediately, especially -- what should have happened before the pilot even got to that point of frustration?

SCHIAVO: Well, what they have to do is first of all I think when this sorts out, we will find is they simply didn't have enough personnel there. But that's the airline's fault. This happened many times over. This happened to JetBlue once before, a couple of years ago. And we had a huge meltdown like this in Detroit after an ice storm which really started the Passenger Bill of Rights movement.

And what has to happen is they have to get the planes to the gate and then to plane, and then move them or bring stairs to the plane because these planes are obviously very large planes. It's not like, you know, small ones. It's big airbuses that JetBlue flies.

And then they have to keep moving the planes. And what the airlines don't want to do is move those planes, tug those planes around like the pilot was saying until they fill them back up with people and get them back out. But that is exactly what this airline Bill of Rights, or rather, Passenger's Bill of Rights was supposed to stop. It was supposed to force the airlines to get on the stick, get the passengers off the plane, move the empty plane, and get the next one at the gate.

PHILLIPS: Right.

SCHIAVO: That's what they don't like to do because it costs them money.

PHILLIPS: It does cost money. And, you know what? Just to be specific, because we jotted down exactly what that Bill of Rights is supposed to do, it says that after a two-hour delay, only a two-hour delay, which that's a long time actually, passengers must be given food, water, access to medicine, and toilets must be clean. And then after three hours, passengers have the option to get off the plane.

So what the heck happened here? I mean, you can't get more clear than that.

SCHIAVO: You can't get more clear than that. And literally what JetBlue was saying is, its executives were saying is we're going to pay the fines. It's going to just, you know, the situation we're going to pay the fines and keep on doing what we're doing.

And so, I would imagine that there will be people on the Hill and Congress looking at why these sanctions aren't strict enough. And I think passengers need to get some of that remuneration as well.

Right now, the money all goes to the government. And the poor passengers are stranded. They have suffered for eight to 12 hours and they have no recourse really other than a lawsuit.

PHILLIPS: Well, and you made the point that the airline will be punished. It will pay the fines. And just for sake of balance here, JetBlue did give us a statement. Basically, it said -- it's blaming it on a confluence of incidents.

The airline Web site goes on to say, "Getting all the flights deplaned at the same time in a small airport is not unlike trying to get an elephant into a smart car; it's not an easy fit."

We will follow what happens to the airline. Mary, thanks.

SCHIAVO: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: You bet.

Herman Cain is going to get some pretty tough questions today about sexual harassment allegations. His campaign has hit some other bumps in the road and survived, even flourished. So, will this be more damaging? We'll ask our Will Cain and L.Z. Granderson. They're coming up.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking top stories now. More than 2.4 million people are without power after a snowstorm buried the Northeast. At least five deaths are linked to that storm, which dumped more than two feet of snow in some areas.

And another bombing in Afghanistan today. Six people killed in Kandahar. The latest violence following Saturday's suicide bombing in Kabul where nine Americans were among those killed.

And NATO's military mission in Libya officially ends today. The bombing campaign began in March to protect civilians targeted by the Gadhafi regime.

We know Herman Cain has said several things that he's had to dial back on or even clarify from his campaign ad with the smoker and his stance on abortion to his idea for a lethal border fence. He called that a joke. Well, now there's sexual harassment allegations. They might be a little trickier to explain.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have you ever been accused, sir, of harassment?

Sir, have you? Yes or no? Have you ever been accused, sir, of sexual harassment? Have you? Have you, sir?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was the last question.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have you sir, yes or no?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That was the last question. Thanks.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Our CNN contributors LZ Granderson and Will Cain have their takes on this. So, LZ, what do you think of his response?

LZ GRANDERSON, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, you know, for a guy who has no problem talking and saying it like it is and telling it like it is and knows all this information about how, you know, Planned Parenthood started and whether or not President Obama's black enough, why not just answer the question, dude? It's a yes or no question. Just answer the question.

This is just politics as usual, and now he's just being exposed as the politician that he actually is.

PHILLIPS: Will, why didn't he get out in front of this? I mean, his campaign had several days.

WILL CAIN, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: I don't know the answer to that, Kyra. I think we might see him try to do that soon.

You know, I would say, we should tap the brakes just a tad bit on this. It was only a couple of months ago that Dominique Strauss-Kahn was accused of things that it's very unclear that he actually did. We like to jump on these stories very early and very clearly and often very wrongly.

That being said, if the story does prove to be true, well then Herman Cain needs to address it immediately and up front. I think that's the only way strategically for him to not have this story be a deal killer for him. Because, you know, we don't know how these things play out. It killed John Edwards' campaign, but it sure didn't do anything to Bill Clinton's campaign.

So, deal with it up front and we'll see how it comes out.

PHILLIPS: Well, Will, do you think he did deal with it up front? It seemed like he got a little uncomfortable. There was kind of a little muttering going on. And then he just looked at the reporter and said, have you ever been accused of sexual harassment?

WILL CAIN: Well, he clearly did not deal with it right up front, right away. And I'm going to answer this question strategically, and I'm going to be honest, I'm not a strategist. You have plenty of people around here who can do strategery.

But what he did do is he ran a line that will probably work with a lot of people. An anonymous story -- chockful of anonymous sources that he can just say is an example of liberal establishment - or mainstream media establishment coming after him will probably play well with the GOP base at first. But if it continues to bounce around, and if these sources come out, and if it's clear it's true, then he's got to change that tact quickly.

PHILLIPS: Here's what Ann Coulter said on Fox News. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANN COULTER, CONSERVATIVE AUTHOR: It's outrageous the way liberals treat a black conservative. This is another high-tech lynching. It's not groping. It's not touching. It's not demanding sex. It's that he had remarks they found inappropriate. One is that he got inappropriate gestures that were not overtly sexual.

Well, what were they, then? This is an outrageous attack on a black conservative who is doing extremely and I think will be our vice presidential candidate.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS Lz, high-tech lynching. Is She right?

GRANDERSON: You know, she should talk about hype. She's all about hype.

Here's the thing. It's not about whether or not Herman Cain can survive this. This is about a man who went to the Christian Broadcasting Network, said he was called by God to run for president of the United States and likened himself to Moses.

When that is supposed to be your calling, you shouldn't be playing political games with a conversation like this. You should be able to say I did not do anything that violated my wife's trust. That is not who I am as a Christian.

He didn't say that. He played politics. So, this isn't about a lynching. This is about him either being a hypocrite or not. So, just man up, Herman. If you did it, say it. If you didn't, say that. But these politics is just making you look like a politician.

PHILLIPS: Will, he might get a talk show. But what about a GOP ticket as vice presidential candidate?

WILL CAIN: That's back to the strategy, Kyra. That depends on how he handles it. I don't know if this will kill his campaign or not.

But I would just caution against all of this certainty. Ann Coulter is apparently very certain that this is a high-tech lynching, that this is a smear campaign, and LZ sounds dangerously close to being certain that Herman Cain has something to apologize for. We're a couple - what? A couple of days at most into this story? I say we might want to find out if this thing is true.

PHILLIPS: All right, guys --

GRANDERSON: Will, if someone says have you been accused of sexual harassment, it's yes or no. There's no high-tech anything about that question.

PHILLIPS: As you can see, the conversation will continue off- line. Will, LZ, I wish we could keep going, but we'll be talking more. And we'll also see what Herman Cain has to say live as he is speaking at a think tank right now in Washington. We'll see if he indeed addresses these allegations. Thanks, guys.

Mitt Romney has been in the public eye for so long. We know all about his politics, his history, his family. But his history with the Mormon Church, he keeps that a little quieter. We're talking about his time as a missionary just ahead.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: More than 100 JetBlue passengers spent eight hours stranded on a frozen tarmac. They were headed from Fort Lauderdale to Newark, usually an uneventful two-hour trip. But when you throw in this freak snowstorm, it's a total different story. The plane actually got diverted to Hartford, Connecticut, and passengers were trapped onboard with little food, water, and backed up toilets. And very little fresh air, by the way.

Andrew Carter was a passenger on that flight. He also happens to be a reporter for "The Sun Sentinel" and is joining me on the phone. You're probably writing an opinion piece, Andrew, this morning.

ANDRW CARTER, REPORTER, "THE SUN SENTINEL" (on the phone): I did. Did you enjoy that?

PHILLIPS: Yes. Why does that not surprise me?

CARTER: It was one of those crazy flight stories, I guess. I always heard those stories and write about them and have seen them on shows like y'all do, and now I finally have my own. So, hopefully it's my only one.

PHILLIPS: Well, I hope so too. And I'm sure you know that this happened back in 2007. The Passenger Bill of Rights was triggered because of that. In any way, shape, or form, were you guys given just an ounce of those bill of rights, or was this just total chaos?

CARTER: No. I mean, and, you know, to be honest with you, I haven't exactly read that bill of rights. But I was on Twitter sending out updates to people. And various folks were getting back to me about the bill of rights and sending me things to read.

And it was a topic we were talking about onboard, you know, among ourselves. Just the fact that there are supposed to be laws against this. People were referencing that '07 JetBlue flight, I think you mentioned - at Kennedy.

So, we were definitely aware there were supposed to be some rights in place for us. There were supposed to be some laws to prevent this kind of thing from happening. But there was no acknowledgment of that from the flight crew. You know, you bring that up to the flight attendants, and it was kind of a moot point. You know, there was just not much information and not much we could do other than just kind of sit there.

PHILLIPS: So, let me ask you this, Andrew because we heard a recording from the pilot. And he was pretty ticked off. He even was telling control that, you know, give him some metal and he'll make the crowbar himself and pull you guys in. I mean, he was pretty irritated.

So, while he was frustrated, was any other member of the flight crew doing anything to make you feel better, to explain, to help with -- I saw pictures that you took of babies that were onboard. I mean, did you get anything?

CARTER: Not really. I mean, I should note that I thought the flight crew did the best they could in a bad situation. You know, I did think that the pilot or the captain rather, Captain Thompson, was very upset. He seemed that way. They seemed like they genuinely cared. Yes, I don't think any of those folks wanted to be stuck onboard either. They couldn't go anywhere. They were stranded just like the rest of us.

I thought they did the best they could. There just wasn't much they could do. I think they were getting bad information from the folks inside the airport. I think the people at JetBlue and the corporate office weren't giving them any insights or direction. And really there was much not, I don't think, that the flight crew could have done better.

There wasn't much they could do. They ran out of food. They ran out of water. They try to do their best to comfort passengers who were upset. There were a few people broke down and were crying. And you mentioned the fact there were babies onboard and other young children who were upset during this whole thing. And I thought that the flight crew did the best they could.

My real frustration lies with the airport and the folks up high in JetBlue who really kind of left us hanging there for a while.

PHILLIPS: We're going to investigate and find out what exactly happened. I know you're getting ready to board a flight now. What airline are you flying?

CARTER: JetBlue!

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Oh, my gosh, Andrew.

CARTER: It can't happen twice in a row, right? PHILLIPS: Well -- yes. We'll find out when we read the paper tomorrow morning if indeed you had another bad experience.

Best of luck, Andrew. Thanks for calling in.

CARTER: All right. Thanks a lot for having me.

PHILLIPS: You bet.

Well, nearly 20 years after her death, a new book is shedding new light on the murder of Nicole Brown-Simpson. Chris Jenner's memoir was previewed actually on RadarOnline.com this weekend. "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT'S" A.J. Hammer has the details for us.

A.J. so, in the book, Kris Jenner actually says she could have saved her best friend's life. What exactly does he mean by that?

A.J. HAMMER, HOST, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT": Well, Kyra, according to her new memoir, kris jenner thinks if she had only gotten together with Brown-Simpson the morning before she was killed the murder might never have happened. Jenner says that Brown-Simpson called her the morning before her death and asked her to come over for an important talk. Unfortunately, Jenner says she was too busy with her kids and she asked if they could get together the next day. By then, of course, it was too late. And Nicole Brown-Simpson and Ronald Goldman were dead, and the nation's fascination of course with the OJ Simpson case was just beginning.

Jenner thinks that Brown-Simpson actually wanted to give her some proof that OJ had been abusing her and she writes about how she's felt guilty ever since then.

And, of course, one bit of irony here, Kyra, is that Jenner's ex- husband, the late Robert Kardashian, was one of the attorneys, of course, who helped OJ earn his not guilty verdict in the murder trial.

PHILLIPS: And now we're hearing about a possible lawsuit from singer Taylor Swift over some topless photos?

HAMMER: Yes. Swift is a little ticked off. And I can understand why. She is reportedly threatening to sue a tabloid Web site for posting and linking topless photos to her. Just to be clear here, Taylor Swift is saying these pictures aren't her. So we're not in one of those, what the heck was she thinking scenarios.

Some topless pictures of a woman who looks like Swift were posted on a Web site called "Celebrity Jihad". And the headline reads, "Taylor Swift Topless Private Pic Leaked?"

Well, according to TMZ, Swift's lawyers told the site it's running false pornographic images and a false news story about the singer, and if the pictures and the story aren't removed, they are going to sue for trademark infringement. Taylor Swift I believe 100 percent did not pose for topless photos, Kyra. It's just not her way.

PHILLIPS: Well, she writes about bad break-ups. My guess is the next big hit will be about the bad photos A.J.

HAMMER: It is exactly.

PHILLIPS: She's write being it right now. A.J. Hammer, thanks.

And A.J. is going to be back with us next hour with more showbiz headlines.

Coming up, after setting a new record, popular British singer Adele is forced to cancel the rest of her 2011 concert tour to have surgery. A.J. will have all the details.

And Mitt Romney has long been a top tier GOP candidate. That means we know his politics and we know his voting history. But what about his time as a Mormon missionary?

Coming up. We're tracking Romney's journey of faith.

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PHILLIPS: Ok. We are just over a year away from election 2012. And at this point, you know Mitt Romney the candidate, the former Massachusetts Governor, the man who helped rewrite his state's health care policy, the guy with the salt and pepper hair who has consistently been near the top of the polls.

But how much do we really know about Mitt Romney the Mormon, the missionary?

CNN producer and writer Jessica Ravitz actually writes about it in on a CNN Belief blog in a piece called "The Shaping of a Candidate: Mitt Romney's Faith Journey". And Jessica always knows how to get a different angle and it's an amazing piece.

JESSICA RAVITZ, CNN PRODUCER AND WRITER: Thank you.

PHILLIPS: But before we talk a little bit about that if you don't mind. I saw the email that you got back from the Romney campaign. You actually wanted to discuss you know this -- this issue with them. And it says, "What makes no sense to me is how you continue to push forward in writing about Governor Romney's Faith Journey when we've made it clear in every way possible that this is not a story we want to participate in."

This comes from campaign spokesperson, Andrea Saul.

This comes from the campaign spokesperson, Andrea Saul -- am I saying that properly?

RAVITZ: Yes.

PHILLIPS: Why are they trying to avoid this it story?

RAVITZ: Since Mitt Romney got into politics when he first ran for Senate against Ted Kennedy in Massachusetts, he's made a real effort to keep his faith in the background. He just doesn't want to be seen as being different. And whenever people don't understand a faith they kind of demonize it or make it seem weird. So they've really tried to keep faith in the background.

My argument to the campaign was, this it would be a way to lift the veil of secrecy and give kind of a picture of Mitt Romney as a man and just what has shaped the person he is today. And his Mormonism very much is a part of who he is.

PHILLIPS: And you do an incredible job at doing that. You talked to a number of his friends who have known him for years. You talked to those that were with him on his mission. And for those that don't understand the religion, Mormons at a young age go on a mission trip. And it does it shape them and their character.

And I just -- I pulled out a part out from what you wrote, this was coming through some of his friends, that Romney delivered sermons, counselled couples, made middle of the night hospital runs, he monitored budgets, weighed welfare needs of immigrants and others and drove outreach to different faith communities.

He showed up at the homes of Latter-Day Saints in need of help, taking on tasks such as removing bees' nests. I mean you really give an insight to not just a presidential candidate but a very decent human being.

RAVITZ: Right. Well, what you just read was from when he was a bishop and (INAUDIBLE) president in Boston. So for 12 years he was volunteering his time as a church leader while climbing a corporate ladder, you know. So that was on top of everything else he was doing at Bain & company. While he was in the mission field for 2 1/2 years he gave his life to trying to spread the word of what Mormonism was all about.

And you know, he was being --

PHILLIPS: And he was criticized for it. Because you write he was forced to wrestle with challenges; keep himself in study and prayer; face plenty of rejection. Romney was no stranger to doors being slammed in his face or getting his behind kicked while heading down apartment stairwells.

I mean this really forces someone to be mature and to grow and to --

RAVITZ: Yes. Not easy. And he's in France; that was fiercely secular. This is during the Vietnam War where anti-American sentiment was huge in France. And so, you know, he's getting beaten up while he's out trying to spread his message and, while he was there, he ended up being in a fatal car accident where he was driving a car and, no fault of his own, there was a head-on collision and the person next to him was killed.

And from that he was a guy who rose up from adversity and ended up rallying the troops and kind of getting everyone back on track. You know, it's a lot for a 21-year-old to be going through. So, you know, I think it kind of set the tone for the type of person he would become when he came back to the United States.

PHILLIPS: I'm curious what the campaign would tell you now that the piece is out. Jessica, thanks so much.

RAVITZ: Thank you so much.

PHILLIPS: And you can read Jessica's entire piece online, go to cnn.com/belief. Look for the shaping of a candidate, a look at Mitt Romney's faith journey.

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PHILLIPS: Well, as we were telling you at the top of the hour, Herman Cain, being accused of sexual harassment. This happened through a story on Politico. The news broke, we've been talking about it since early this morning.

And then we got word he was going to be speaking live her at a think tank at Washington AEI. And we weren't quite sure if he was going to address these allegations of sexual harassment. We were told by his campaign at some point today he was going to address.

Just a moment ago he was asked about it. He refused to discuss it. We're going to have that moment for you in just a second. Right now, you're looking at the live Q&A as he was asked about it and he has moved on to a different subject.

You know the think tank has said that he would be taking questions mainly on 9-9-9-, his tax plan among other questions. All right. And I'm being told that we will have that moment for you. We're working on it right now.

But once again, Herman Cain being asked about the sexual harassment allegations. He refused to talk about it. However, his campaign does say he's going to address it at some point today. Well, we'll wait and see.

We're going to take a quick break. We'll be right back.

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