Return to Transcripts main page

CNN Newsroom

Cain's Accuser May Speak Out; Greek Crisis Fuels New Fears; World Braces for G-20 Summit; Bank of America Drops Debit Card Fee; Other Banks Axed Debit Fee Plans; Enough Pot to Fill a Dump Truck; Distracted Pilot Sentenced to Jail; Off Duty Cop Saves Mom, Baby from Train; Feds: Suspects Planned Ricin Attacks; Domestic Terror Suspects to Court; Greece Keeps Investors on Edge; G-20 Focuses on Economic Crises; Royals Send Life-Saving Aid to Africa; Regis Philbin's Replacement Named; Starbucks Wants Your $$ For Jobs

Aired November 02, 2011 - 10:00   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. Thanks so much for joining us here in the CNN NEWSROOM. Herman Cain is surging in the polls, but stumbling to defuse a political time bomb.

Allegations of sexual harassment dating back to the 1990s, well, Cain calls it a smear campaign. Here's what he said just an hour ago.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HERMAN CAIN (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: There are factions that are trying to destroy me personally as well as this campaign. But there is a force greater.

There's a force at work here that is much greater than those that would try to destroy me and destroy this campaign and this journey to the White House.

And that force is called the voice of the people. That's why we're doing as well as we are in this campaign thus far. You all are supposed to applaud.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: Well, at least one of Cain's accusers is not laughing. In fact, she might go public if she's allowed to. Her attorney says she might break her silence, but only if the confidentiality agreement is lifted.

CNN's Joe Johns is in Washington. Joe, that lawyer actually spoke to CNN last night.

JOE JOHNS, CNN SENIOR CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's right on "AC 360." Interesting, another busy day for Herman Cain, he seems to keep speaking all over Washington, D.C. There's a lot of good information in that interview from last night.

It confirms number one, what we always knew, that there is another side of this story. There is a woman out there, possibly two, we think two, according to this lawyer, who would like to come forward.

But this one woman sounds like she's bound by confidentiality agreement from 12 years ago with the National Restaurant Association, where she and Herman Cain both worked. The lawyer is Joel Bennett, spoke on "AC 360."

Said he has not contacted the National Restaurant Association, but it also sounds very much like he's hoping the association on its own will release the woman from the confidentiality agreement that was signed so many years ago. So that she can speak publicly about it. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOEL BENNETT, ATTORNEY FOR CAIN ACCUSER (via telephone): I have not had any direct contact with the National Restaurant Association. In the interviews I've given, I've suggested that would be the right thing to do.

So that she can tell her side of the story since Mr. Cain is telling his side of the story. And if they, if they agree to that, then I will confer with my client again and see what she wants to do. Ultimately, it's up to her.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

JOHNS: It's also interesting, the lawyer also asserted without any degree of certainty, essentially that it's his understanding the original tip on this story may have come from the National Restaurant Association.

Now that of course would be important information, if it's accurate. Because there are a lot of people out there right now, including Herman Cain, suggesting there's some type of plot, if you will, to discredit him.

And if you can put a name on the source of the information, it might tell you a little bit more, perhaps, about motivation. So we'll see on that one -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right, Joe, you've got a law degree. So let me ask you this. I mean, Cain is already speaking about what happened here, not in total detail, but he's talking about it. Hasn't he already broken the confidentiality agreement?

JOHNS: You know, it just depends because we haven't seen it. We don't know what the confidentiality agreement is. The question is whether he's one of the parties, or one of the signatories, one of the people who actually would have signed the document.

If that's the case, perhaps you know, there's a possibility that he certainly has breached the confidentiality agreement. But reading between the lines here, and looking at how much he's talking, you sort of come to the conclusion that the one of the parties, if you will, the party that's holding everything up here is the National Restaurant Association.

They're the people who have control over the confidentiality agreement. But it's just hard to say, Kyra, because we don't know what the document actually says and who signed it.

PHILLIPS: Well, it shall continue. That's for sure. Joe, thanks.

Herman Cain is in Alexandria, Virginia, at this hour at a health care convention. He's expected to hold a news conference in just a few minutes. We'll bring that to you live.

OK, investors around the world, pretty much on edge. The Greek bailout is on hold and now there are a lot of concerns of an economic crisis that could sweep around the globe.

In France, right now there's a high-stakes meeting of world leaders and experts who shaped the world's economy. As they go behind closed doors, well, protesters are pouring into the streets.

We've got it covered for you. Ali Velshi is in Cannes, France, for the G-20 Summit. Alison Kosik is looking at the ripples on Wall Street and Zain Verjee looking at the world reaction right now.

Let's see how Wall Street is reacting to the latest uncertainty. Alison kosik, how do the markets look?

ALISON KOSIK, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Markets are looking pretty darn good right now. The Dow is up 120 points, but the market still wants some answers. They want specific answers, Kyra. They want solutions on this global -- on this global mess, that's what's really going on here.

You know, growth is already slow. It could get even worse, especially when you look at Europe. Did you know that the euro zone's GDP forecast is only for 4.3 percent growth all of next year? So, yes, the number one worry right now is the European debt deal.

Lots of questions, like will it go through, can Greece, Germany, France and the rest of the euro zone implement a plan to cut debt. Now we saw the European debt deal pretty much blow up yesterday after the Greece's prime minister called for a public vote.

So sure tensions are high, there's a lot of uncertainty and it's not just Greece, Italy is dealing with its own high pool of debt of $2.5 trillion. Italy really needs to show commitment to reform as well.

And I haven't even mentioned the U.S. The U.S. is dealing with its own debt issues. Remember the "Super Committee?" It needs to hammer out a debt deal, a debt-cutting plan by Thanksgiving. So, yes, we are not in the all clear just yet even though the markets are higher today -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Yes, and we're looking at the numbers now. Dow Industrials is up about 117 points. We'll continue to watch those numbers. Alison, thanks so much.

You know, the G-20 Summit will include heads of state, policy makers, probably some you've never heard of, but the decisions could impact every person on the planet.

So it's no surprise that the world is watching and so is Zain Verjee. She's in London looking at all the newspapers this morning because she's such a well-read gal. Zain.

ZAIN VERJEE, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Well, you know, I've been flipping through all of them today, Kyra and let me give you a sense of what the "Guardian" is saying. Here is the headline. It says, "Protesters confined to Nice, as police seal off Fortress Cannes."

It goes on to say, "France is keen to avoid a repeat of the violence at the 2000 European Union Summit in Nice, when 50,000 anti-capitalism protesters fought running battles with riot police."

Take a look at "The Irish Independent." I was looking at their headline, which reads, "Last chance for G-20 to show leadership. The G-20 was created in 2009, as the steering committee for the world economy. The latest unforeseen twist in Greek politics risks relegating the G-20 to a group of bystanders."

And finally, Kyra, "The China Daily" Hongkong says, "Bumpy road still lies ahead. Needless to say what the international community is hoping for is not just a joint statement at the end of the summit, but down-to-earth collective actions."

And you know, Kyra, France and Germany have been really hopping mad at this latest crisis with Greece and the real question people are asking at this summit is what is Greece going to do?

How is Greece going to move everyone forward because Greece really has the world between the acropolis and a hard place -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Do you want to grab that phone line there? I'm just curious.

VERJEE: Yes, sorry. Hi, mom.

PHILLIPS: Zain Verjee, as the world braces for the G-20 summit. Thank you, Zain.

Score another one for consumers in the battle against big banks. Bank of America has become the latest to give up on debit card fees. OK, Christine Romans, we're getting somewhere. But there's always hidden charges someplace else, come on now.

CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: I know, I've already been sneaking around trying to figure out where they're going to be more charges popping up. Maybe a charge to talk to a human person or a charge to get a paper statement, a charge to check your balance because we've seen those in other accounts. OK, here are the two lessons from the big banks, from this Bank of America news, dropping its $5 debit card fee. One, consumers matter. I mean, many of these banks said that their consumers told them that this wasn't going to fly with them.

And two, bad publicity matters also. Two big things that the banks, I mean, it appeared they didn't care about. But now we see them testing and then back-pedalling away from these charges to use your own money. These debit fee charges.

Molly Katchpole is the 22-year-old with two part-time jobs who is sort of sparked this controversy over Bank of America. She said, come on, this isn't fair. Her online petition had more than 300,000 signers. We asked her this morning how she feels today.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

MOLLY KATCHPOLE, ONLINE PETITIONER: Finally, you know, this big corporation is listening to its customers and backing down and that is so exciting to me. And I wish that could happen more often. You know, I just want everybody to know that if they're unhappy about something, they can try to create change.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

ROMANS: I will say Bank of America stuck it out a little bit longer than others did. You saw J.P. Morgan Chase, Wells Fargo, they backed off some of their pilot programs. Suntrust, Regions Bank, they said they heard from their customers.

No, they would not charge you this debit card fee. So, look, consumers matter, we see that, but be very, very careful and please, everyone, scrutinize your -- scrutinize your statements if you are late, you will get a fee. Your interest rates could go up.

The bottom line here is be very, very careful how you use your credit cards, your ATM cards, your debit cards, because they're looking for ways to -- they're looking for ways to get the fee money -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Thanks for the warning, Christine.

Well, straight ahead, four senior citizens accused of being terrorists. And the feds say, the suspects planned to make their own biological weapons, more on that after the break.

Plus enough marijuana to fill a dump truck. We'll tell you how much this nearly one-ton load would have gotten on the street.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking stories cross-country now. Police near Racine, Wisconsin, say they busted a huge marijuana operation. They actually seized enough to fill a dump truck more than $7 million worth of pot. The property owner is in jail now on a $1 million bond. In Philly, the pilot of a barge that crashed into a sightseeing boat and killed two tourists was sentenced to a year and day in jail. Matthew Devlin admits that he was distracted when his ship crashed into this duck boat last year. He also surrendered his Coast Guard issued license.

An off-duty officer as you can see, saved a woman and her infant when her car got stuck on a railroad crossing. The mom apparently failed a couple of sobriety tests and was thrown in jail. Her child, turned over to a family member.

Well, in Georgia, four senior citizens are accused of being part of a pretty bizarre murder plot, to kill federal officials. The suspects are set to appear in court later today.

And our George Howell is live in Gainesville, Georgia. So George, tell us a little bit more about this alleged plot.

GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, Kyra, these four men allegedly had plans to kill a lot of people, some scary stuff here. I've been reading through the affidavits that are part of this federal investigation.

And I want to single out two quotes from Fred Thomas, who investigators describe as the leader of the group. Striking quote here, quote, "There is no way for us to save this country, to save Georgia without doing something that is highly, highly illegal."

Another quote reads, "When it comes to saving the constitution that means some people got to die." All of this information came from confidential sources who told investigators about this group, the militia called "Covert Group" that they planned to buy ammunition and explosives.

And that they had planned to produce a deadly toxin called Ricin. Ricin, if it gets in your lungs or gets on your skin, it is deadly. They planned to disperse Ricin on highways in Atlanta and in other cities across the United States.

But investigators say they made the arrests before these men could become a threat. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SALLY QUILLIAN YATES, U.S. DISTRICT ATTORNEY: They had taken substantial steps, such that it was important that they be arrested and be charged with crimes, but the public was never in any imminent danger.

The FBI and the Joint Terrorism Task Force was monitoring it to make sure that it was never close to anything actually happening. So no one was in imminent danger.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HOWELL: So this morning, this afternoon at 2:30 Eastern Time, we are waiting to see Frederick Thomas, Dan Roberts, Ray Adams and Sam Crump make their first appearances in federal court.

These men in their 60s and 70s, they had actually planned to target workers, government workers, people that are in the media. Also they say they were planning to attack the ATF and IRS buildings in Atlanta -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: George, we talked a little bit about this last hour. But tell our viewers about this special expertise that these men actually had.

HOWELL: Well, this is very interesting, reading through the affidavits. Crump was apparently a contractor with the CDC and Adams was a lab tech with the USDA. It also says that Adams had the formula to produce Ricin and that he had castor beans. Castor beans necessary to produce that deadly toxin -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: We'll follow the court proceedings. George Howell, thanks so much.

Still ahead, Greece inching closer to the brink of economic crisis, investors are cringing and world leaders are scrambling. Ali Velshi will join us live to explain.

Will and Kate filling up aid boxes to send to east Africa. People there are suffering to famine and drought. Well, up next, we're live at the UNICEF center where the royal couple is right now getting the food, water and medicine all ready to ship.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, it's been less than an hour since the opening bell rang on Wall Street. Investors are bracing for a pretty volatile day. Right now, Dow Industrials is up 150 points.

There are a couple of reasons for the nervousness too, one of them unfolding right now at the G-20 Summit of economic leaders. Of course, that's where our Ali Velshi is. Anything business you'll find Ali. Everybody is in France, but the talk is about Greece.

ALI VELSHI, CNN CHIEF BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's exactly right. I had my -- I had my Speedos packed to have sort of a relaxing day and maybe show up on TV a little bit and tell you what was going on at the G-20, Kyra. But I'll bring them for you, I don't have them with me right now because everything changed.

Everything is about Greece. Yesterday, the Greek prime minister said that instead of saying yes to this deal that was worked out in large part to help Greece, out of its financial troubles, rather than approving it, the Greek parliament is going to put it to a referendum.

Now there's a very good chance that if you put this vote to a referendum, this idea that the Greek people are going to have to pay higher taxes, take fewer holidays, work longer hours, work until they are older and lose a lot of benefits, they may thumbs down to the deal.

And that imperils the entire deal that was supposed to help out the euro zone, help out the banks that are in trouble. So what's happening is they've summoned the Greek Prime Minister, George Papandreau here to Nice, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be here.

They're going to pile on to him. President Obama is arriving this evening. Treasury secretary is going to be here. They're going to pile on to say you are imperiling all of Europe by saying that you're going to put this vote to a referendum.

And if you do that, you're imperiling the recovery in the rest of the world. So that's what's going on right now. There's supposed to be a vote in the Greek parliament on Friday about this. It's unclear whether this suggestion will actually pass parliament.

But basically between now and Friday, we're back into this uncertainty. If there is a referendum, Kyra, it could be in December or even January and that's going to create more uncertainty for markets.

We saw very, very heavy drops on the market yesterday. So if you want to know what the connection is between you and what's going on in Greece? That's exactly it. That uncertainty turned markets down, it ended up costing people money in their 401(k)s and their retirement accounts.

PHILLIPS: And the thought of you in a Speedo there, in the south of France could cause anything --

VELSHI: It could still happen. If the Greeks don't settle this thing -- yes.

PHILLIPS: Ali Velshi, Lord help us all.

VELSHI: We'll talk tomorrow.

PHILLIPS: OK. Thanks, Ali.

Well, Will and Kate are actually packing aid boxes to send to East Africa. As you know, that area has been devastated by famine. Right now, they're at the UNICEF center in Denmark.

And they're getting food, water, medical supplies ready to ship. Royal correspondent, Max Foster live in Copenhagen. Basically, they've been spending time with the folks there at UNICEF. Max, seeing what's in the boxes and getting ready to see the shipment go.

MAX FOSTER, CNN INTERNATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, I'm trying to get this horrible image of Ali in Speedos out of my head. I'm going to focus right now. They're currently -- inside the building behind me. This is a vast global center for all of UNICEF's aid.

A little earlier on we saw all four royals packing boxes of aid to go out to the children. So what you've got is the royals and the two Danish royals, the crown princess and princess, Princess Mare, the Australian, he married a few years ago.

Altogether, it's a meeting of minds we're told. All four of them very concerned about the situation in East Africa and they're going down the news agenda. They wanted to come here to highlight it and all four of them made visits to Kenya.

The prince and princess made visits there. And they've gotten more and more worried about this. This was quite a recent engagement they organized. They're here now. We spoke to UNICEF. They're very pleased to have them here highlighting this case and they say's there's going to be hard work involved in today's visit as well.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

CARYL STERN, CEO, U.S. FUND FOR UNICEF: The royals are going to be packing, stacking and packing.

FOSTER: You're going to make them work for their visit money?

STERN: They're working, absolutely working. You know, I think the primary message of today is, anyone can help.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

FOSTER: There's a real problem, Kyra, with just raising enough aid right now in a world economy, an American economy in recession. There's not enough money coming through to this and not enough awareness. Many other news stories that the world has been focusing on recently.

PHILLIPS: And Max, you made the point, you know, why are they so interested in this part of the world? It's very special to them. I mean, this is an area where they got engaged.

FOSTER: Yes. And they -- they stayed in touch with friends, they've been hearing reports from friends and they've been quite shocked by it, we're told, by the palace. It's an area of the world they're interested in.

And Harry goes to Africa quite a lot. Prince William has got some charities there and the prince and princess of Denmark have both visited there. So there's this meeting of minds. They wanted to get together and these are four very glamorous royals.

And UNICEF are really pleased to have them here. A bit later on the duke and duchess are going to go to the airport and see all of this aid loaded on to a B.A. passenger plane.

All the seats are going to be filled up. A mercy mission, going to Nairobi overnight. We'll pick up the story from there tomorrow. So we'll see the follow-through of this as well.

PHILLIPS: All right, we will follow through. Thanks, Max.

Herman Cain's scandal, will it hurt him or help him? He says his fundraising phones are ringing off the hook. We'll ask our "Political Buzz" panel how this will play out.

Plus, the feds now looking for $600 million after Jon Corzine's Wall Street firm goes bust. Corzine is a former governor as you know, a man who was once on the short list for treasury secretary. And he's right in the middle of it all.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking the top stories right now. President Obama leaving for the G-20 summit tonight. Global leaders meeting in France. Starting tomorrow they're going to look at a deal to contain Greece's debt crisis.

A British judge ruled today that Wikileaks founder, Julian Assange will be extradited to Sweden to answer questions about sex charges. The court will hold another hearing this month to determine whether Assange can appeal.

And attorney for a woman who accused Herman Cain of sexual harassment is questioning Cain's recent statements on the case. The woman may tell her side of the story, if a confidentiality agreement can be waived.

All right, time for "Political Buzz," your rapid-fire look at the best political topics of the day. Three questions, 30 seconds on the clock and playing today, CNN contributor, Maria Cardona, Sirius XM political talk show host and comedian, Pete Dominick, and Republican strategist and columnist for "The Hill" newspaper, Cheri Jacobus.

All right, guys, first question, Jon Stewart talking about Cain's sexual harassment allegations. Here it is.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JON STEWART, HOST, THE DAILY SHOW WITH JON STEWART: If he's telling the truth, he's just a nice church-going guy and everything he does now is tainted by these allegations. That clip of Herman Cain smiling at the end of his political ads?

(LAUGHTER)

STEWART: That's just -- that's just dirty. That commercial is just always going to play with different music in people's heads now.

(LAUGHTER)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS: OK. All jokes aside. Cain's campaign did raise $400,000 on Monday alone. He even said in an interview that his fundraising call center crashed. So, could this actually rally his supporters? A lot of people coming forward and analysts saying it will. Maria.

MARIA CARDONA, CNN CONTRIBUTOR: Well, clearly it has, if those are the kinds of numbers that he's raising, but the question is Kyra, what is coming next that you already have one of the women that is accusing him of sexual allegations, that sexual harassment, that she wants to come out and tell her story.

So, it depends on the next steps. It depends on how he handles it. I would be more worried if I was a supporter of his of the comments that he's made that clearly indicates that he's not ready to be commander-in-chief. Just yesterday or this past Monday, he talked about how he's worried about China becoming a nuclear power. Hello! China has been a nuclear power for decades (BUZZER).

PHILLIPS: All right. Cheri?

CHERI JACOBUS, REPUBLICAN STRATEGIST: The question for GOP primary voters regarding Herman Cain is he more like Bill Clinton with regard to Paula Jones and the other situations that currently we know Democrats were just fine with that or is this more of a Clarence Thomas situation where it's a one-off. Now, the problem is, there seems to be some question whether there is a second woman.

Usually, stories like this need more substantiation. You have to show a pattern and Politico might have a problem with that. I know a lot of reporters behind the scenes are checking that out. If it looks like it's just one allegation and this woman was not even spoken to in advance, they may be scraped up the -- (BUZZER) and the NRA is not coming forward. Politico has a problem, And Cain lives to fight another day.

PHILLIPS: Pete?

PETE DOMINICK, SIRIUS XM POLITICAL TALK SHOW HOST: Oh, Kyra, this story has got legs. This is making Anthony Weiner look like a one-off. And it's because Herman Cain, really, is giving it legs. First, he says he doesn't know anything, then he says he knows something, then, he says it was three months' worth of pay, then, it was three to six months worth of pay. We find out it was a year's worth of pay.

If this woman does come out and speak, oh, this is going to be great for us, comedians and political pundits. But you have to wonder, who's giving money based on this. I don't know. I mean, there is a sliver of his supporters that might love the idea that women -- (BUZZER) that he says women are harassing him or that women say they're harassing him. I don't know. Is it a misogynistic element?

PHILLIPS: Stay tuned. All right. A group supporting Cain actually calls this a quote "high-tech lynching." Cain, himself, has even said in an interview, as a matter of fact last night, that he does believe that race is a factor. So, do you agree, Cheri?

JACOBUS: You know, again, it goes to whether this turns out to be a Bill Clinton situation or a Clarence Thomas situation. If there's no second woman, and this story is only half-baked and Politico ran a little bit too soon with it or if that's all there is, then I think there is some, you know, some credibility to the charge that Herman Cain is being targeted because he's a Republican African- American, and that just simply won't be tolerated.

So, I think it really hinges on the credibility. National Restaurant Association has to come out clearly somebody there already breached the confidentiality agreement by showing somebody something -- (BUZZER) -- but it all hinges on if this is a pattern with the second woman.

PHILLIPS: All right. Maria.

CARDONA: That's an insane allegation. And it's offensive that his supporters would even connect this to a lynching. They need to go back and study exactly what a lynching was. A lynching was torture, it was murder, it was hangings. This is not what this is. This is big-league politics.

And Herman Cain and his supporters need to stop whining, need to put on their big boy pants, take a class in crisis communications or three, get out all of the information to get in front of the story if he want to survive and move on.

PHILLIPS: Ooh, Maria brought out the big boy pants. Pete, perfect segue.

DOMINICK: I agree with Maria. I mean, we shouldn't use the word "lynching," unless, we're talking about a lynching. I don't know what's high-tech about this at all, and I don't understand the racism. People are going to connect it, somehow, to Clarence Thomas.

I don't get it, but it's not like anybody accused Barack Obama of being a secret Muslim, non-American, a socialist, a Marxist who hung out with the almost unsavory elements in the world, palled around with terrorists. Nothing like any of that. This is ridi -- I don't the race factor -- (BUZZER) -- and we're going to find out maybe, maybe that one of his opponents leak this information, a Republican perhaps. We'll see.

PHILLIPS: Stay tuned. All right. Buzzer-beater now guys. Twenty seconds each on this. Radio host, Bradley Dean (ph), jumping off the Michele Bachmann bandwagon saying that everyone is thinking, lady, you stink. When will we start to see GOP candidates drop out of the race? Maria.

(LAUGHTER)

CARDONA: That's going to be -- that's an interesting question, Kyra. I don't know, but I will say this -- I am starting to get a little offended that everyone is going after Michele Bachmann. This guy who said that she stinks, did he see Perry's latest speech? Oh my God. Talking about stinking.

Has he heard about Romney's latest flip-flop? Has he seen Herman Cain talking about how he's worried about China -- (BUZZER) -- being a nuclear power? Talking about stink? It's all over the GOP candidates.

PHILLIPS: Cheri. JACOBUS: I think Pawlenty probably got out a little bit too early. I don't think candidates should be dropping out just yet, you know, this time. In 2008, John McCain was carrying his own luggage through the airports because he didn't have any money. He ended up being the nominee. Look, President Obama is such a failed president, the job situation, the economy.

He keeps trying to run out of town and run around Congress. He can't get anything done. His incompetency is clear. I don't think any GOP candidate -- (BUZZER) -- should be dropping out of the race giving how bad Obama is.

PHILLIPS: All right. Pete, bring us home.

DOMINICK: Kyra, I looked into this guy, Bradley Dean (ph). I don't know if people know who this guy is, but he is really afraid of everybody, Muslims. He's afraid of gays, he makes Reverend Wright look like the pope. So, any affiliation with this guy that Michele Bachmann had for a general election wasn't going to help her, anyway.

I mean, a lot of these candidates are just in it for speaking fees and to sell their books -- (BUZZER) -- and I think that's really why Michele Bachmann is still running.

PHILLIPS: Thanks, guys. We shall do this again. All right.

Now, we're going to talk about a story that combines politics, Wall Street, and possibly, the worst of both worlds. At the center, former New Jersey governor, Jon Corzine, and the bankrupt brokerage firm that he ran. CNN has learned that more than a half billion dollars 500 million of customer money is missing, and the feds are now investigating.

Susan Candiotti has been working her sources, joining us from New York. So, Susan, this is just a pretty breathtaking in scope, isn't it?

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: It is, and that firm and possibly former Governor Corzine could be in big trouble. Right now, he is not being mentioned as a target here specifically. The FBI is now joining an investigation begun by the Securities and Exchange Commission to find out what happened to at least $600 million of customer money.

And the question is, did MF Global, which filed for bankruptcy Monday, use its customers' money to help prop up the beleaguered company? If they did, it's a serious charge. Rules require firms to keep customer funds separate from company money. MF Global is a company that former New Jersey governor, Jon Corzine, took over last year.

And Corzine, no stranger to managing money, he was also the former CEO of Goldman Sachs, quickly made some big bets on some rather risky assets. We're talking more than $6 billion invested in the debts of Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Ireland. European nations with troubled economies. And when Europe started to teeter, people started to worry about those bets. And it created a crisis of confidence.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SCOTT PELTZ, RSM MCGLADREY: At the end of the day, they took a very risky position. It was very large, and because of its size, became risky and put pressure on the capital of the firm ultimately resulting in a lack of confidence by investors and other parties, and essentially, creating a run on the bank.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CANDIOTTI: Corzine was close to finding a buyer for MF Global over the weekend, but when the potential buyer learned about the missing money, it walked away from the deal. At yesterday's bankruptcy hearings here in New York, MF Global's attorney argued that all the money has been accounted for. But federal officials say they're still trying to get to the bottom of what really happened in the days before MF Global filed for chapter 11.

So, for now, again, we're still waiting to hear more from the FBI, but for now, they are not confirming or denying their investigation, and we haven't yet heard back anything from Senator Corzine.

PHILLIPS: OK. We'll follow it. Thanks, Susan.

Is the search to replace Regis Philbin over? Up next, find out who will be sitting next to Kelly Ripa in just about three weeks. A.J. Hammer's got the scoop.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: OK. We now know who's going to replace Regis Philbin when he steps down for good in just two and a half weeks. Can't believe it's almost there. The news actually broke earlier this morning, nose for news, maybe that's what I was thinking. "Showbiz Tonight's" A.J. hammer here with the scoop. Drum roll.

(LAUGHTER)

A.J. HAMMER, HOST, HLN'S SHOWBIZ TONIGHT: Yes. Kyra, I'm thinking it might not be permanent, though. Jerry Seinfeld is going to be the first guest host on "Live with Regis and Kelly" after Regis makes his exit. I don't think he's going to be staying there for a full-time gig, but he will be guest-hosting for three shows in November.

He's just one of what's going to be a parade of guest hosts as the show decides who is going to be the full-time replacement for really the irreplaceable Regis Philbin. And they are clearly going for variety in their guest hosts, listen to the line-up. It includes Kim Cattrall, Howie Mandel, and the great Miss Piggy, Kyra. Miss Piggy and Kelly sitting next to each other. PHILLIPS: Oh, my goodness. They're going to be some competition there for diva-hood, for sure.

HAMMER: I think, I think.

PHILLIPS: Oh, I can't wait to see Jerry Seinfeld and Kelly. That's going to be a hood (ph). All right. There's also some pretty shocking news out there about one of the most popular teen idols on the planet.

HAMMER: Yes. The Bieb. Justin Bieber is being sued by a woman who says he is the father of her three-month-old baby boy. She's 20- year-old Mariah Gator (ph). She would have been 19 at the time she got pregnant, and she's alleging that she and then 16-year-old Bieber had unprotected sex in a backstage bathroom after one of his concerts.

Now, she's demanding he take a paternity test, but even if she were to prove her claim, she could be in trouble with the law, because, you know, a D.A. could conceivably investigate her for statutory rape. Again, he would have just been 16 years old.

As for Bieber's response to the suit, well, a PR rep for his music label is telling "Showbiz Tonight" this, "While we haven't yet seen the lawsuit, it's sad that someone would fabricate malicious, defamatory, and demonstrably false claims. We will vigorously pursue all available legal remedies to defend and protect Justin against these allegations."

And no big surprise, Kyra, all the headlines having a little fun with the title of one of Bieber's biggest hits this morning "Baby, Baby, Baby."

(LAUGHTER)

PHILLIPS: Oh, boy. I'm not going to go there, A.J. But, we will go to Kim Kardashian, filing for divorce. I don't know. A lot of speculation out there about, really?

HAMMER: Yes. Well, Kim is speaking out for the first time giving a pretty in-depth explanation of what she says happened. Of course, a lot of people are really feeling duped by her 72-day marriage and all of the hype and the TV programming that went along with it, but Kim claims her intentions were pure. She posted a letter online.

In the letter, she calls herself a hopeless romantic. She denies that the wedding was a made for TV scam. Let me read a bit of what she wrote. "I love with all of my heart and soul. I want a family and babies and a real life so badly that maybe I rushed into something too soon." And quite frankly, I give Kim credit for copping to that and the fact that once the whole wedding train started rolling down the track, she didn't quite know how to grab that emergency brake.

She was so afraid of disappointing people. Obviously, people were disappointed in either case. It really became this no-win situation for her. She is in Australia right now. And she's faced TV cameras for the first time since announcing her divorce. Here's what she told a local camera crew in Australia.

OK. Maybe, we don't have that sound, but basically, she's saying she doesn't feel like she needs to defend it. She doesn't feel like she needs to defend the idea that she may have made money from this, which she claims she didn't make all the money everybody says.

By the way, Kyra, the gifts that she received for her wedding totaled over $60,000 by some estimations, and she is saying that she will be donating money from all of those gifts to the Dream Foundation. So, at least, there's a charitable effort here and I tip my hat to Kim for doing that, at least.

PHILLIPS: What about the $2 million rock she's got on her left hand? What do you do with that?

HAMMER: Yes, there is that. And apparently, everybody is saying she gets to keep it. That's what happens. You know, when you file for divorce, it doesn't matter. You get to keep the rock.

PHILLIPS: All right, A.J., until tomorrow. If you want everything breaking in the entertainment world, A.J.'S got it, "Showbiz Tonight," HLN, 11:00 p.m. eastern every night, and then of course, with us, in the morning, 9:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m. He's always got our headlines.

Starbucks wants to jumpstart the job market with your cash donations. Up next, the company's CEO tells us why he wants average Americans to all pitch in.

Also, we're going to show you one gusher of a hit-and-run. This is what happens when a car hits fire hydrant.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Checking stories cross country now.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS (voice-over): In Los Angeles, a 35-year-old man accused of being a so-called hackerazzi has pleaded not guilty. Christopher Cheney (ph) is accused of hacking into the e-mail accounts and devices of more than 50 celebs. The judge raised Cheney's bail to more than $100,000.

How is this for water pressure? Police (ph) say it's what's left of a hit-and-run crash with a fire hydrant. The water was so strong, as you can see, it lifted the car some ten feet into the air.

And advocates for people with disabilities say New York City's new taxis violate A.D.A. standards. They can hit in the streets in 2013.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

PHILLIPS (on-camera): Well, Starbucks is rolling out a new program to boost small businesses, and the company wants you to help. CNNMoney's Poppy Harlow joining us now live. Poppy, you actually spoke to Starbucks CEO, right, about this plan that hopefully put Americans back to work?

POPPY HARLOW, CNNMONEY.COM: Absolutely. You know, it's interesting, Howard Schultz, the head of Starbucks, is sort of taking the jobs crisis in this country into his own hands. You're going to see these little wrist bands. They say, let's create jobs for USA. They're all over Starbucks, about 7,000 Starbucks across the country. You can give $5 as a donation to fund small business loans, and they say that's going to help create jobs in America.

And in return, you get the wrist band. The bigger story behind this that's so interesting, Kyra is this push that Howard Schultz, the head of Starbucks, has been making for the last few months. I want to show you some web roll of his website.

He came out this summer with a pledge, to ask people to stop donating to Washington, and political campaigns, and to Washington got its fiscal House in order and got a long-term debt plan. he also asked business leaders, large and small, to pledge to hire, as you can see, about 3,200 business leaders have already done that.

Now, Starbucks is saying we're putting our money and our muscle where our mouth is. We are committing money and an effort to this. So, I asked him why is it businesses' responsibility to operate in a way that is asking people to put money and their support behind creating jobs in America. His answer was very interesting. Take a listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

HOWARD SCHULTZ, CEO, STARBUCKS: The old school of looking at profit as a singular goal for the reason a company exists, I think, is a shallow wrong approach. I also believe that those companies that are willing to embrace the balance between profitability and social conscience will make more money.

You'll be able to attract and retain greater people, because they will believe in the reservoir of trust of the company.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

HARLOW: Kyra, Starbucks is putting $5 million of their own money behind this effort to support it. And I asked Howard Schultz, all right, do you think it's a moral obligation for business leaders in this country, you've got a lot of businesses sitting on billions of dollars, record amounts of cash, is it a moral obligation to hire?

He said, I wouldn't go that far, but businesses need to change the way that they work, and Starbucks is certainly doing that. It's a step out that we haven't seen from business leaders, really, across the country yet, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: He sure knows successful business, that's for sure. Poppy, thanks.

And make sure that you go to CNNMoney.com for more on Poppy's story and all the day's money news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Here are some stories making news later today.

President Obama speaking at Washington's Georgetown waterfront next hour. He's expected to push Congress to approve parts of his American Jobs Act.

Minutes later in Washington, a bipartisan group of senators is expected to unveil cost-saving plans for the cash-strapped U.S. Postal Service.

And then later today at 2:15 eastern, Federal Reserve chairman, Ben Bernanke, speaking on the feds' updated economic forecast and whether interest rates could change.

A quick break. We'll be right back.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

PHILLIPS: Well, he's the man of the hour, and probably, next hour, too. Just everyone is talking about it. Herman Cain right now speaking live in Alexandria, Virginia. He's speaking to a group of doctors, but as you know, amid these allegations of sexual harassment.

Apparently, he's not going to take Q&A, but, he might mention this. We are monitoring it, this live event, and we'll keep you updated on what he says.

Meanwhile, President Obama is also speaking. It will be in about half an hour, though. And, he's hoping to sell his jobs plan. Brianna Keilar is at the White House with more on that -Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CONGRESSIONAL CORRESPONDENT: Hey there, Kyra. He's going just a few miles down the road to the key bridge which connects Georgetown and Arlington, Virginia to deliver remarks on the infrastructure spending part of his jobs plan. The Senate expected to take that up this week. Republicans criticizing that saying it won't be quick enough to create jobs.

And also on the ticker, we have a unique look at a media blitz. The White House has done the target local TV stations. If you were watching the briefing yesterday, you might have seen some new faces. A number of local television anchors from across the country, they got to interview the president. They even got to meet Bo the dog and got some (INAUDIBLE) and they broadcast their evening newscast from the South Lawn.

You can check that out on the 1600 report which is our White House at CNNPolitics.com. And also on the 1600 report, you might be kind of surprised to see who Vice President Joe Biden and his wife, Jill, are having over for dinner tonight. None other than House majority leader, Eric Cantor and his wife, Diana.

You might say, hey, that's kind of an unusual pair considering that Cantor has been often a thorn in the side of the White House, but the two, according to Democratic and Republican sources, developed genuine affection for each other this year, working together on deficit reduction, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. Brianna Keilar at the White House, thanks so much. And that does it for us. We'll be back here tomorrow morning bright and early, 9:00 a.m. eastern time. Fredricka Whitfield in for Suzanne today.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello.

PHILLIPS: Good morning.

WHITFIELD: Have a great day.

PHILLIPS: Thank you.

WHITFIELD: We've got a busy afternoon because you've had a very busy morning.

(LAUGHTER)

WHITFIELD: So, you're just passing on the baton.

PHILLIPS: There you go.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks, Kyra.