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Andy Rooney Dead at 92; Joe Frazier Has Liver Cancer; Still No Power in Connecticut; Greek Vote of Confidence; Two New Movies for the Weekend; White House Counsel Not Complying with Solyndra Subpoena; An African-American to Run as Governor at Mississippi; President Obama and Mitt Romney Tied in the latest Poll
Aired November 05, 2011 - 16:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: A sad day for fans of former CBS commentator Andy Rooney -- the 92-year-old broadcaster died last night after complications from minor surgery. Rooney retired from CBS' "60 Minutes" in October. And earlier I spoke to his colleague, Bob Simon.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BOB SIMON, CBS NEWS "60 MINUTES" CORRESPONDENT: I think people looking at him on camera might not realize what a nice guy he was. He really was. When I joined "60 Minutes" and "60 Minutes" is not the easiest club in the world to join, he was awfully, awfully nice. He invited me to lunch. He'd call now and then to see how I was doing. He's a sweetheart of a human being which didn't always come across from his commentary.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: All right. Correspondent Bob Simon there. Rooney's funeral will be private but a memorial service is expected to be scheduled.
And this just in. Former heavyweight boxing champ Joe Frazier, "Smokin' Joe" has liver cancer. Frazier's manager says the 67-year- old is seriously ill and currently in hospice care in Philadelphia. He was diagnosed just last month. Fight fans will remember that Frazier was the first man to beat Muhammad Ali back in 1971 but then he lost two later bouts with Ali.
Thousands of Connecticut Power and Light Company customers can expect another cold night without service. That freak fall snowstorm that hit the northeast last Sunday left hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in the dark. And as of this morning, some 215,000 of them are still without power. The utility vows 99 percent restoration by tomorrow night.
And a little more breathing room for Greece which has been teetering on the verge of bankruptcy. Prime Minister George Papandreou met with the country's president said just hours after narrowly winning a vote of confidence. He says he will do whatever he can to form a coalition government. His next objective, to push through approval for an international bailout package. Civil action groups urged Americans to take their money out of big banks today. These protesters in Washington went to a Bank of America branch and closed their account saying, "I did it," when they left. The move your money and bank transfer day movements were started by people fed up over fees. A national survey shows at least 650,000 customers joined credit unions after the Bank of America announced that it had plans to impose debit card fees. The bank has since reversed that decision.
Tiger Woods' former caddie is apologizing for a racially charged remark aimed at his old boss. Steve Williams was in China at an awards dinner for caddies when he made the comment. Woods fired Williams this summer after 13 years together. The golfer's agent says the comments were regrettable. On his website, Williams says he never intended to offend Woods or anyone else.
That brutal storm that hit the northeast a week ago is still testing the patience of hundreds of thousands of people. Connecticut was among the hardest hit state. And many residents there are still without power.
CNN national correspondent Susan Candiotti is live now in West Hartford where all those downed tree limbs tell the story of why so much power is out.
SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: They sure do. Hi, Fred. More utility crews than ever before are working feverishly to get people back online. For example, in West Hartford, Connecticut, twice as many crews working here today as we've seen in several days. This is what they're up against. For example, this old tree next to a house, snapped off right there at the top, the branches came down on top of these power lines. These are power lines now. If you move down the road, you can see that it is leaning right over the road. And this is what takes the extra time to repair.
People are really pretty much fed up and are more than anxious to get back online.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): At nearly every turn, fallen trees, twisted limbs and tangled lines. Leaving hundreds of thousands of Connecticut residents in the dark more than a week after a freak storm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: At night, we come home and do the best we can, with little - with no heat and cold water.
CANDIOTTI (on camera): No generator.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. We don't have one.
CANDIOTTI: You just have to bundle up?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We have to bundle up. We haven't bundled up like that in years.
CANDIOTTI: What do you have here?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Inflatable bed.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Audrey and Bob (INAUDIBLE) are keeping their fireplace going, sleeping on an inflatable bed in their den.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm cold. Oh, my god, do we have to go through another day like this?
CANDIOTTI: Residents are fed up waiting for power to come back on. The state's attorney general is investigating whether the utility company failed to properly prepare. West Hartford's mayor is frustrated.
SCOTT SLIFKA, WEST HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT: I'm running out of words to describe how furious I am about it. This has been - it's been hideous. There's -
CANDIOTTI (on camera): She agrees with you.
(voice-over): As we spoke, a resident chimed in.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I'm furious. This is ridiculous.
SLIFKA: And she should be.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes. We've been without heat since Saturday. The house - it's cold. And where are the trucks? Where are they?
CANDIOTTI: Connecticut light and power crews are hard at work, now getting help from 22 states and Canada and the National Guard.
(on camera): Do you think you were prepared enough?
BILL GUNLAN, CONNECTICUT LIGHT AND POWER: I do. I think we were as prepared as we could have been for this storm. You know it has hit us a bit harder than we anticipated. But I think we have ramped up our workforce just as quickly as we can.
CANDIOTTI (voice-over): Governor Dan Malloy is keeping an eye on the clean-up and the utility's promise to get 99 percent of its customers back online by Sunday night.
GOV. BOB MALLOY, CONNECTICUT: I'm worried that they're not being realistic about it. That's why certainly I'm out here.
CANDIOTTI: Bob and Audrey (INAUDIBLE) are skeptical, too.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We'll believe it when we see it.
CANDIOTTI: For now, they're holding on to hope and each other.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
CANDIOTTI: The numbers certainly are improving. The latest we're hearing from Connecticut Light and Power is that they're down to 15 percent of their customers who remain in the dark. Remember, they're trying to make a goal of having 99 percent of their customers back online by midnight tomorrow. Let's see if they make it, Fred.
WHITFIELD: Yes, let's hope so. And we fall back one hour. So they got an extra hour in which to do so, right? Susan Candiotti.
CANDIOTTI: That's right.
WHITFIELD: Thank you so much.
All right. Andy Rooney won many awards during his long career with CBS. But first and foremost, he considered himself to be a writer. Today as we remember the passing of a legendary journalist, we wanted to take a look back at his last commentary. It was delivered just over a month ago.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANDY ROONEY, : A writer's job is to tell the truth. I believe that if all the truth were known about everything in the world, it would be a better place to live. I know I've been terribly wrong sometimes, but I think I've been right more often than I've been wrong. I may have given the impression that I don't care what anyone else thinks. But I do care. I care a lot.
I have always hoped that people will like what I've written. Being liked is nice, but it's not my intent. I spent my first 50 years trying to become well known as a writer. And the next 30, trying to avoid being famous. I walk down the street now or go to a football game and people shout, "Hey, Andy," and I hate that. I've done a lot of complaining here. But of all the things I've complained about, I can't complain about my life.
My wife, Margie, and I had four good kids. Now there are grandchildren. I have two great grandchildren, although they're a little young for me to know how great they are. And all this time, I've been paid to say what is on my mind on television. You don't get any luckier in life than that. This is a moment I've dreaded. I wish I could do this forever. I can't, though. But I'm not retiring. Writers don't retire. And I'll always be a writer.
A lot of you have sent me wonderful letters and said good things to me when you meet me in the street. I wasn't always gracious about it. It's hard to accept being liked. I don't say this often, but thank you. Although, if you do see me in a restaurant, please, just let me eat my dinner.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Moammar Gadhafi's final hours on the run from one of his top lieutenants, we'll talk to a man who was in the car with the Libyan tyrant the day he died.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. We've seen the graphic pictures of Moammar Gadhafi's final moments before his death. Now you're about to hear about the former Libyan dictator's final hours on the run from someone who was very close to him.
Jomana Karadsheh reports.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JOMANA KARADSHEH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They call them the black box of the Gadhafi regime. Mansour Daou was one of the former dictator's top security officials who remained by Gadhafi's side until his final hours. We met with him at a detention facility in the city of Misrata where he's being held. Daou was in the car with Gadhafi during their chaotic escape from their final hiding place, their hometown of Sirte.
MANSOUR DAOU, FORMER GADHAFI SECURITY OFFICIAL (through translator): He wanted to go to his village, maybe he wanted to die there or spend his last moments there.
KARADSHEH: Daou remembers a frantic scene after their convoy of more than 40 vehicles was struck by NATO jets twice, followed by an escape on foot that ended with heavy fire from fighters who had surrounded them.
He says he lost consciousness after he was hit by shrapnel in his back and does not know how Gadhafi died. It was two days before anti- Gadhafi forces entered Tripoli that the dictator left for Sirte. He says (INAUDIBLE) went a different direction to the city of Ben Walid on August 22nd with Gadhafi's son, Saif, and intelligence chief Abdul (INAUDIBLE). Daou later followed the former leader to Sirte.
Daou says their living conditions went from bad to worse in the besieged city. They moved around abandoned houses every few days. They survived on the little food they could find. And towards the end, they had no power, water or communication with the outside world. He says Gadhafi spent his final days writing and reading books he had stacked in suitcases. But the situation got to him.
DAOU (through translator): He was very worried and erratic. This could be because he was afraid.
KARADSHEH: He says Gadhafi believed he could remain in power. Some members of his inner circle tried to convince him to leave the country since March, Daou says but it was his sons especially Saif who refused.
DAOU (through translator): It's not easy for someone who has been in power for 42 years to believe that it is all over in a minute.
KARADSHEH: He says Gadhafi felt betrayed by world leaders he considered allies. Some of the friends Gadhafi said let him down.
With the regime he served for decades now history Daou awaits trial by Libya's new rulers. He tells us in the presence of his interrogators that he's being treated well, but says he has not gotten a lawyer yet. Daou says he regrets being part of the regime, not specifically about the crimes he's accused of.
DAOU (through translator): Sometimes I regret everything. I have even regretted being alive. But unfortunately you sometimes regret when it is too late.
KARADSHEH: Jomana Karadsheh, CNN, Misrata, Libya.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Perhaps you need another reason to exercise. Well, a new study says moving around can help prevent cancer. We'll take a closer look in just a few moments.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right. Time is running out to save Greece's finances. We got a live report from Athens coming up.
But first this, here's a new reason to get up and move. Research shows that many cases of cancer could be avoided if people just exercised. Earlier this week, I talked with CNN senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen about that.
Take a look and then, and then maybe take a walk.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: All right. Time to get up out of your seat. A new study says people who spend a lot of time sitting could be more likely to get cancer. Senior medical correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here to explain all this. So draw the correlation for me, now. Cancer and sitting too much.
ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN SENIOR MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Yes, the data that exercise is good for you, not just for your heart but also for cancer is so strong that you and I are going to take a walk while we walk.
WHITFIELD: OK. Let's do it right now. Get up off our seat.
COHEN: Let's go. I'll lead the way. This is called the walking meeting. You and I are having a walking meeting.
WHITFIELD: Power walking.
COHEN: Power walking. Even just walking a little bit a day can help. Of course, we'd like for people to get more. But this new data shows from the American Institute for Cancer Research is that nearly 100,000 cases of cancer could be avoided if people had more physical activity. So -
WHITFIELD: Period? Just exercise, just work it?
COHEN: Do something. Do half an hour at least let's say four days a week. That's what we want people to do, or even more. But we know that's not always possible. So go for a quick walk. Do what you and I just did. Even just a quick walk. Get up from your chair a couple of minutes every hour.
WHITFIELD: Maybe throughout the day.
COHEN: Yes, break it up throughout the day?
WHITFIELD: You can get in 30 minutes in one day, I guess 10 minutes here and there?
COHEN: Yes, 10 minutes here and there.
Yes take the stair.
That's one of ours -- not the elevator. There we go. Have walking meetings. If you have to sit and talk to someone, you might as well be moving. That's important. And then the other thing you want to do is exercise in your office. I know this sounds crazy. But even if you're in a cubicle -
WHITFIELD: Like with the chair?
COHEN: Yes with the chair. Leave some weights in your cubicle or do stretches against the wall. Even that kind of thing can help. Also if you're on the phone, you know, we all spend tons of time on the phone, get on your cell phone and just walk around with it. Use your headpiece and just walk around while you're on the phone. Easy enough, right?
WHITFIELD: That counts for something.
COHEN: You can go to cnn.com/empoweredpatinet and there's more tips about little ways to work exercise into your daily life and why it's important.
WHITFIELD: And so what is it about exercise or keeping things moving that cuts the risk of getting cancer?
COHEN: OK. Probably several different ways. But here's one of them. Just keeping your weight down and cut down on your risk of getting certain kinds of cancer. So just losing weight in and of itself and especially that belly weight. That belly weight can be really bad. That's why one of the reasons exercise is so important.
WHITFIELD: Men or women? Just want to (INAUDIBLE).
COHEN: Both are good.
WHITFIELD: OK.
COHEN: Exercise is good for everyone.
WHITFIELD: Work it into the whole family regimen, right?
COHEN: Right. You know, a doctor I was talking to once said, "I wish I can write a prescription for exercise. It's actually more powerful than a prescription for drugs.
WHITFIELD: Oh my goodness. And of course, in the end, it makes you feel so good when you do keep yourself moving.
COHEN: It does. Just make it a priority.
WHITFIELD: All right. Elizabeth Cohen, thanks so much.
COHEN: Thanks.
WHITFIELD: Appreciate that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Elizabeth and I did a little walking. Jacqui and I are doing a little stretching, some lungs.
(CROSSTALK)
JACQUI JERAS, AMS METEOROLOGIST: How about some toe raises, right?
WHITFIELD: You can do that without power.
How's it going?
JERAS: It helps to keep you warm.
WHITFIELD: (INAUDIBLE) exercise.
JERAS: It does. Keep moving.
WHITFIELD: Absolutely.
JERAS: And unfortunately, there's still a lot of people that don't have power.
WHITFIELD: I know. It is not a laughing matter. It's very uncomfortable, it's cold. 200,000 people without power.
JERAS: Right.
WHITFIELD: But maybe, according to the governor, maybe tomorrow -
JERAS: By midnight tomorrow night. Not tonight. They're hoping to meet that deadline. They're less than 300,000 without power. Still a lot of people, unfortunately.
WHITFIELD: I'm going to take my lungs out here.
JERAS: She's going to exercise while I do some weather. Feel free to do that at home as well.
Temperatures in the 50s, right, and upper 40s across the northeast. And it's nice to be outside if you're out in the sunshine and if you have a jacket on but if you don't have power and you don't have heat, it's definitely uncomfortable. And so that continues to be a concern for these folks. We take a look at the five-day forecast for Hartford. For example, we do have warming temperatures. That's the good news. Tonight, we could drop down around the freezing mark. But that's it. The rest of the week looks a lot better. And dry weather expected all through the week until Thursday. That's a big storm that we're going to be watching. Not just for Hartford but the entire country, in fact. That storm right now, we're calling it storm number two way over here in the Pacific Northwest. First, we're going to start talking about storm number one. This is impacting millions of people across the plain states and across the rocky mountain states for today and it's bringing in just some incredibly strong winds and some heavy snowfall too.
We got winter weather advisories and winter storm warnings. Again, this is like the fourth storm for Colorado in about two weeks. So we're looking at four to eight. You know, we'll see some significant accumulations at the higher elevations, eight to 16. But it makes it tough for travel but happy for the people who are still able to ski out there.
The other thing is we're getting incredible wind reports. In fact, I've seen some wind reports pushing 100 miles per hour. But that's in some of the passes, though. So keep that in mind. A 60-mile-per- hour gusts are going to be more widespread. And it is possible with winds that strong, you guys could see power outages here for today. So we're talking from the Dakotas all the way down into parts of Texas and New Mexico where we have those wind advisories in effect.
All right. Now, we'll talk about storm number two and what this thing is doing right now. It is bringing in some rains here across parts of the west. And there you can see the snow already beginning to move into parts of the cascades. Now we do have some warnings in effect as well for parts of the Sierras. And that's where we're expecting to get as much as a foot-plus of that snowfall.
And as we take a look at tomorrow's map, we'll have to watch this thing because as this moves toward the plains, it's going to pick up some moisture from the Gulf of Mexico and we could see a significant outbreak of severe weather here across the southern plain states into the middle plains. That's going to be Monday and into Tuesday.
And last but not the least, Fredricka, don't forget, before you go to bed tonight, set those clocks back one hour.
WHITFIELD: I like that extra hour.
JERAS: Yes, everybody gets an extra hour of sleep. Except for those of us who have children and get up with the sun no matter what.
WHITFIELD: It's an incentive to get to sleep one hour earlier and bedtime is one hour earlier too.
JERAS: Sure. Works for me.
WHITFIELD: (INAUDIBLE) All right. Thanks so much, Jacqui.
All right. Greece, the nation is near bankruptcy. And now the prime minister wants to form a new government. Why does this matter here at home? We'll tell you after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Now back to Greece and its financial problems. Prime minister George Papandreou met with the country's president today hours after narrowly winning a vote of confidence. He says he will do whatever he can to form a coalition government. His next objective, to push through approval of an international bailout package.
Jim Boulden joins us now from Athens, Greece, where all of this is unfolding. So Jim, tell me, what's the latest there?
JIM BOULDEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Well, the latest is that this prime minister is trying to form a coalition government. It could take a couple of days. He is in negotiations with some of the minor parties. But that kind of nitty-gritty doesn't worry the markets too much. What worried the markets over this past week is just when this huge bailout had been agreed with the International Monetary Fund, the European Union, there had been a big sigh of relief in the markets. We saw stock markets rising around the world. It all came apart here in Athens for very good reason because it looked like it was going to be difficult to get an approval through this Parliament.
So now they're trying to rebuild a coalition and try to then get this agreement through Parliament. So things are looking a little bit better this weekend than they did just a few days ago, Fred.
WHITFIELD: And how might all of this impact the U.S.? What would be the real ripple effect?
BOULDEN: Yes. It's called contagion, isn't it? We saw it happen with Lehman Brothers in 2008. We saw when the banks stopped lending to each other overseas. There was a real fear here maybe not justified but a real fear in Europe that the euro could collapse or Greece could be pushed out of the euro. Greece would default, would bankrupt itself, run out of money. There would be a run on banks, there would be panic, stock markets would fall, all of those scenarios playing out.
Greece needs money by mid December or it will run out of money. So then this whole theory that you would start to see banks stop lending to each other that would affect the mortgages, that would affect the interest rates. That fear came back again this week. That's what this government has to try to rebuild, confidence. Fred?
WHITFIELD: Jim Boulden, thanks so much, from Athens.
A look at our top stories right now. He was witty, engaging and kind of everybody's guy. That's how some people are remembering Andy Rooney today. The legendary CBS news commentator has died just weeks after making his last regular appearance on "60 Minutes." He considered himself an average guy who wrote about life as he saw it. Rooney was 92.
And a big report is expected next week about Iran's nuclear program. Sources tell CNN that the International Atomic Energy Agency will make its most detailed charges to date about the country's weapons developed. The IAEA report apparently shows that Iran has been secretly developing technologies to build weapons including computer models of a warhead. Iranian officials say the program is a peaceful one.
A former Penn state assistant football coach has been charged with sexual child abuse. Two current university officials face charges of covering it up. A grand jury brought down the indictment against Jerry Sandusky who retired from coaching back in 1999 and was founder of a charitable organization for young people. The state attorney general accuses the former coach of repeatedly preying on young boys. He faces seven counts of involuntary, deviant sexual intercourse and a litany of other charges.
The jury in the Conrad Murray involuntary manslaughter trial will continue its deliberations on Monday. Jurors worked for seven hours yesterday after getting the case. They are trying to decide if the doctor was responsible for Michael Jackson's death from a drug overdose.
Ben Stiller and Eddie Murphy team up for a heist on the big screen.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
EDDIE MURPHY, ACTOR: Hey, the two pair of drawers doesn't cost $50?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: $12 scented candle.
MURPHY: OK. We'll get to work tomorrow.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wait a minute. We all just proved ourselves. How do we know you can pull this off?
MURPHY: I stole $264 in cash. Never give your wallet to a thief.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Our movie critic Grae Drake joins us next with her grade on "Tower Heist."
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Alright, it's a weekend. And so, let's see what's playing at the movie theater? Our movie critic, Grae Drake from Fandangoandmovies.com, joining us today. We're looking at two very different comedies.
Finally, we love to laugh, don't we? This is going to be fun.
GRAE DRAKE, MOVIE CRITIC, FANDANGOANDMOVIES.COM: We do.
WHITFIELD: Yes. We've got "Tower Heist" from Eddie Murphy and Ben Stiller. Where could you go wrong? Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) MURPHY: In a robbery, things can change quickly. Go from hot to cold, just like that. You have to be ready to adapt to the situation. You have to be able to think on your feet. I was on a job a few days ago where a homey got shot in the face.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He's kidding right?
MURPHY: He tried in the head, so. He can shot in your head. If you get shot in the face and come out to the other side, then what you are going to do, die.
MATTHEW BRODERICK: I saw. I'll die.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: There's Matthew Broderick, too. This is going to be very something else.
OK, so, Grae, you tell me. Did you like? What is this about? They're trying to plan a heist.
DRAKE: OK, they are in a heist.
WHITFIELD: Tower heist.
DRAKE: Exactly. The employees of Ben Stiller's building that he manages have been swindled by a Bernie Madoff-type character played by Alan Alda. And there are a lot of words I could describe this movie like competent, adequate, tolerable, like its fine.
WHITFIELD: Those are not words that I want to hear with you know side-splitting comedy.
DRAKE: I know. It's not side-splitting, although there are some good laughs. Now, that is due largely in part to Mister Eddie Murphy who's doing two things in this movie right. The first one is he is not wearing a fat suit of any kind. Yes. And secondly, he is making fun of lame white people, which is exactly what he should be doing.
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: OK.
DRAKE: So. Yes, I'm hoping that he remembers this when he hosts the Oscars next year. It's completely average. So, I give it the average grade of "C."
WHITFIELD: Let's move on to the next movie. A very Harold and Kumar 3D, Christmas. I did not see the previous ones. Do I need to in order to appreciate this?
DRAKE: Yes.
WHITFIELD: OK. Let's take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don't smoke anymore.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I just felt that a lot of times when I got high, things would go really wrong. So.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But, Harold, weed is so good. It gets you high.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I have nothing against weed, OK? I'm planning fun times about weed. But I'm an adult now. And frankly, I'm kind a glad that the craziness is behind me. Do you smell something burning?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
DRAKE: Harold and Kumar is filled with inappropriate and offensive humor. It is very depraved. There is a lot of inebriation. So, in other words, it's just like Christmas at Courtney love's house. You're going to love this movie.
(LAUGHTER)
WHITFIELD: OK, So, not it sounds like a build-up to a much better grade than you gave "Tower Heist".
DRAKE: Very, very much so. I love it when stoners prove me wrong. I give it a wholehearted "A."
WHITFIELD: Wow.
DRAKE: Yes. It's really fun for fans of the series. They took the story in a new direction and I'm very impressed.
WHITFIELD: Alright, time for a CNN equals politics update now. We're keeping an eye on all the latest headlines at the CNNpolitics.com desk and here's what crossing right now.
The White House council is not complying with the subpoena about energy company Solyndra. A house panel is investigating the Obama administration's decision to issue more than a half a billion dollars in federal loan guaranties to the failed solar power company. Solyndra later filed for bankruptcy. The White House says the initiative was more about partisan politics than being a balanced investigation.
And one of the women accusing presidential candidate Herman Cain of sexual harassment is standing by her decades-old complaint but she's not coming forward. She issued a statement through her attorney alleging that Cain made unwanted advances and engaged in inappropriate behavior.
And President Barack Obama and Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney are running even in the latest nationwide poll. It is the second national poll showing the two in a virtually tied position in a hypothetical contest for the presidency. The campaign trail led to Iowa's capital city last night. Five of the Republican candidates spoke at the annual Ronald Reagan dinner in Des Moines. Mitt Romney and Herman Cain, however, were not there. Texas governor Rick Perry drew applause from his plan that would freeze the salary of a lot of federal workers.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GOV. RICK PERRY (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Until the budget gets balanced, I'm going to impose an across-the-board pay freeze for congress and all federal employees pay outside of the military and the public safety areas.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Iowa's first in the nation presidential caucus is January 3rd.
And for the latest political news, you know exactly where to go, CNNpolitics.com.
Alright, some of the occupy protests have been taking violent turns in some cities. But here in Atlanta, they seem to be taking a page from the civil rights movement of the '60s.
CNN's George Howell takes a look.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GEORGE HOWELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): We've seen police clash with protesters in cities across the country. But in the cradle of the civil rights movement, it's a different story.
TIM FRANZEN, OCCUPY ATLANTA PROTESTER: Everywhere we walk in this neighborhood is in the steps of Doctor King and it's a big shadows.
HOWELL: In the heart of the south where images like these from the civil rights era are still fresh in the minds of some, occupy protester Tim Franzen says the stakes to keep the peace are higher for both sides.
FRANZEN: It would be painful to see you know acts of civil disobedience met with you know physical brutality. So, I do think the mayor is in a precarious situation.
MAYOR KASIM REED, ATLANTA: I think we've handled them consistent with our values. I mean we didn't use any tear gas. We didn't use overwhelming force.
HOWELL: Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed initially gave an executive order permitting protesters to occupy Woodruff Park through November seven. But he says, after seeing a man illegally carrying an Ak-47 and after growing safety concern, he rescinded that order. And police arrested 52 people for staying in the park too long.
REED: They will have to respect our ordinances because I felt that the environment was getting dangerous.
HOWELL: Even with the city and protesters at odds, both sides are turning to civil rights icons who marched alongside Doctor Martin Luther King for guidance. Protesters are even taking nonviolence training here at the king center.
JESSE JACKSON, RAINBOW PUSH COALITION: Renew your faith, keep your hope alive.
HOWELL: The Atlanta movement is getting encouragement from Reverend Jesse Jackson who says he's hoping for a creative solution.
JACKSON: Mayor's abiding. Protesters are abiding. All of us, the mayor's a part of the 99. Atlanta is a part of the 99.
HOWELL: Atlanta's mayor tells us he turned to mentor and former mayor, Ambassador Andrew Young, for guidance.
ANDREW YOUNG, GOOD WORKS INTERNATIONAL: I didn't want police getting out of hand and getting blamed for something that's not their fault. And I think that you have to err on the side of patience and I think he did.
HOWELL: Even Joe Beasley, a civil rights activist and one of the 52 people arrested, agrees --
JOE BEASLEY. CIVIL RIGHTS ACTIVIST: We're trying to work it out in a traditional way.
HOWELL: Turning to the playbook of the past to find solutions for the present.
George Howell, CNN, Atlanta.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: And a protest from another era, do you recognize this photo from the '60s?
1968, Mexico City, in particular, that's John Carlos on the right. Then he was protesting discrimination and he was making a stand for human rights. And now he is part of the occupy movement. He will be our guest tomorrow in the 2:00 Eastern hour.
Johnny Dupree is a Democrat running for governor in an area of Mississippi that overwhelmingly elects Republicans. He's also in an area that hasn't elected an African-American since right after the civil war. With both factors stacked against him, he is still optimistic about the election. You'll hear his chat with Don Lemon next.
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WHITFIELD: A rarity in Mississippi politics. An African-American is the democratic nominee for race for governor. Johnny Dupree if elected would be the first African-American to hold statewide office since reconstruction. But the only color he wants to talk about, green.
CNN's Don Lemon has this "black in America" report.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DON LEMON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): If you thought the Johnny Dupree for governor campaign would be celebrating, except for Johnny Dupree.
JOHNNY DUPREE (D), MISSISSIPPI GOVERNOR CANDIDATE: I got all the nation's duty calls.
LEMON: Couldn't win the Mississippi primary because he's a black man in a state stigmatized by racism. Because he didn't have as much money to spend as his white opponent, Lieutenant governor, Bill Brian.
DUPREE: You can fill in the blanks.
LEMON: But primary voters made history by making Johnny Dupree the first African-American ever to have a real chance of becoming the governor of Mississippi.
DUPREE: That's awesome, isn't it? We live in a place called America that allows things like that to happen that have never happened before.
LEMON: But is it realistic in a race where not much distinguishes one candidate from another. They disagree mostly over how to pay for universal health care and whether voters should show id at the polls. And those two ideas aren't enough to motivate voters according to retired political professor, Joseph Parker.
EMERITUS JOSEPH PARKER, PROFESSOR, UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN MISSISSIPPI: Most white voters in Mississippi vote for the white candidate and most black voters vote for the black candidate.
LEMON: Parker says to win as governor; Johnny Dupree would have to get all the black votes and at least a third of the white. He did it in 2001 when he became the first black mayor of Hattiesburg. But can he do it statewide?
PARKER: If he does, it will be like Moses rolling back the red sea.
DUPREE: I'm here to talk to you about color -- green.
LEMON: The only color Dupree wants to address is money, something his state, the nation's poorest, desperately needs. Something his opponent has a lot of, outspending Dupree 7 to 1.
But Dupree is confident.
DUPREE: I have 100 percent chance of not winning if I wasn't in the race. But I have a 50 percent chance of winning because I'm in the race.
LEMON: Dupree has proven the polls, the pundits and the naysayers wrong before. But with this much at stake, can he do it again?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: CNN's Soledad O'Brien brings you "black in America," that special on ratio diversity in another place Silicon Valley. Check out the new promised land Silicon Valley which airs Sunday night, November 13 at 8:00 Eastern time.
Much, much more of the NEWSROOM coming up and a little bit more conversation about Mister Dupree, with Don Lemon's reporting there. Very interesting.
So, is he finding that while there may be that 7 to 1 kind of ratio versus his competitor -- is he finding that, I guess, his campaign is resonating with people? Is he drumming up more support? Is he feeling like that 50/50 is more favorable for him?
LEMON: He is. And he's done it before, where people have counted him out. And you know sometimes when you're the underdog and people underestimate you, it works to your advantage. So he certainly believes, and his wife, that it's going to work to his advantage this time.
Not a lot of polling done there. As you heard the professor say in my story, he says, you know the white candidate usually voter by the white voters, black voters usually go through -- he'd have to win over a huge amount at least 40 percent ratio of the white vote in order to win.
So, it's - it's going to be tough. But there's not a lot of polling. So we don't know. Following him around on the streets, yes, I would say he has a chance. You know just from the limited time I spent with him, but not going statewide, I can't really tell you, so.
WHITFIELD: Fascinating piece.
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: You have a lot more coming up straight ahead in the NEWSROOM this evening.
LEMON: Oh, yes --
WHITFIELD: And you nailed the - the purple and gold --
LEMON: Yes.
WHITFIELD: We understand what that's all about, Louisiana guy.
LEMON: Before we go to that.
(LAUGHTER)
LEMON: There we go.
WHITFIELD: Now we have to get some Alabama folks on the scene because they're going to look for a little equal time now. All right, that's tonight.
LEMON: Come on, tigers, come on, LSU! You can do it.
WHITFIELD: Finding its way in the NEWSROOM tonight?
LEMON: Yes, of course it is. But you know I have to tell you just quickly, I'm sure we are running of time here but, we told you about the 16-year-old girl in Texas, the video online of her dad who's a judge, allegedly beating her. Then she showed it to him such to repair a relationship, you know the super nanny?
WHITFIELD: Yes.
LEMON: Super nanny was so - yes. Her name is Jo frost. She was so outraged that she reached out to us and said, you know what, I want to be on to talk about this because there's a right way and a wrong way to discipline.
WHITFIELD: She wants to talk about that corporal punishment.
LEMON: Because there are a lot of people online who are taking his side saying, well, there's a difference between abuse and sparing the rod, spoiling the child. There are some people who agree with what he did and they believe that you should discipline your kids with the belt, with the rope, or whatever it is.
So, they believe in that corporal punishment. So, she said there is a right way, and a wrong way. So coming up at the NEWSROOM at 7:00, the super nanny is going to have a lot to say. You don't want to miss that.
WHITFIELD: No. We'll look forward to hearing from her. She always had some very strong opinion. One more time, I know. Got to get that --
LEMON: Go, tigers! Go, tigers, go!
WHITFIELD: Don Lemon thanks so much. We look forward to you this evening and Joe and more LSU, all that. All right.
A hotel burglar, taken down by a couple of mix t martial arts fighters? Sounds like a movie, doesn't it? Well, it actually happened in California. We'll explain when we come back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: All right, let's take a look at some of the other stories we're following. There's cop-on-cop badmouthing in Florida after a state trooper pulled over a speeding Miami police officer.
The two sides had been name-calling and insulting each other on a law enforcement blog. Miami P.D. says the highway patrol shouldn't have stopped their colleague at gunpoint. The highway patrol says he shouldn't have been driving 122 miles an hour. The officer says he was rushing to get to an off-duty job. Rescuers in China pulled out the last 45 miners who were trapped after an explosion on Thursday. Eight miners died but a total of 67 were saved.
And a space experiment in Moscow is over. Six men were placed in isolation last year to simulate a mission to Mars. The European space agency wanted to find out how the mind and body would deal with a long flight to that planet.
Lights, camera, action, a man accused of robbing a hotel clerk at gunpoint was captured by two martial arts experts. It looked like something out of a movie, but it was real life. Melissa McCarty has the story from our Los Angeles affiliate, KTLA.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MELISSA MCCARTY, KTLA CORRESPONDENT: Greg Alvarez and Billy Denney are in town to compete in a martial arts competition but they got some unexpected training.
BILLY DENNEY, MARTIAL ARTS EXPERT: I heard, he's got a gun and he just robbed her.
MCCARTY: Police say 31 years lot Luis Rosales (ph) is the gunman who held a nine millimeter gun toward the clerk at this Korean hotel demanding money on Wednesday. After Rosales (ph) put the gun into the duffel bag, the clerk ran out from behind, held down his arms and yelled for help.
GREG ALVAREZ, MARTIAL ARTS EXPERT: I went over around grabbed him, and then locked him up from behind, his hands, positioned him down.
MCCARTY: Alvarez and Denney are both trained fighters so competed in the MMA (ph). They wrestled with the gunman for several minutes talking the guy down.
ALVAREZ: I told the guy hey, you know this isn't the decision you want to make. You know let's make the right decision from here.
DENNEY: God, show me your hands. Show me your hands. And so, I had his hands up. But I had to hold the bag also so he couldn't reach in. Hold the gun out.
MCCARTY: The gunman kept trying to escape, pleading with the men.
DENNEY: He needed the money. He needed the money for his daughter.
MCCARTY: They used their Jujitsu moves to hold him.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Took him to the ground, took his arm out, wrap him up.
MCCARTY: Seen here on security video, they held their positions until police arrived.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Danger never really crossed my mind. We should have just knocked him out.
MCCARTY: But they held him back as in true hero form, they restrained him while telling him, life isn't over, he'll have another chance to make it right.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Wow, what an incredible story. We'll have much more straight ahead in the NEWSROOM. Don Lemon is coming up next.
I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Don't forget, fall back one hour tonight, don't forget. Set your clocks back. See you later.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
